Instant Message
by brezoflower
Summary: A Konoha chat room! Sakura finally gets a computer of her own and logs in, but only one person is online in Konoha. Noir18? Who calls himself THAT? SasuSaku
1. Noir18?

AN: Hey everyone :) I've decided to completely rewrite these old chapters and try to make a new one in addition. It's going to take a while, but I really miss this story and the community here who left some amazing reviews. I hope you like it! Don't worry, I kept the plot intact, just added backstory and made the interactions more believable.

Disclaimer: Do not own! Much of anything, really.

Noir18=Sasuke

Cherrylover2=Sakura

Instant Message

Chapter One:

Noir18

Sakura tore into the wrapping of the oversized present eagerly, hardly daring to hope it was what it looked like. If it was, she needed to be super careful, these things were breakable. Not to mention heavy! But all of her anxieties were put to rest as she sat there gasping in happiness when she caught sight of the gleaming glass screen.

A brand new computer.

"Happy birthday, honey," her mother said as she beamed at her daughter. Her father, with a disapproving frown etched onto his face, clapped a hand on her shoulder.

"Now, remember," he said gruffly, "only Disney sites, you got that?"

"Dad!" Sakura exclaimed with a laugh, and mock pouted. "We're still doing this? I'm not a kid anymore." She knew he wasn't being serious, but really? She was seventeen now. That was over legal age of _anything _in the Fire Country. Her dad always had an element of overprotectiveness, and while she understood, still...If she hadn't been paying the majority of the mortgage on this place through her missions and hospital work, she would have had her own apartment by now. Her parents had insisted they wouldn't take her money. But they couldn't argue if she lived there too, using it herself, right? This is how she won the continuous argument for the past three years.

Anyway, that was enough self-reflection. She had a new computer.

"I'm gonna go set it up!" she exclaimed, grabbing the heavy box with chakra-enhanced ease and hoisting it up the hardwood stairs to her bedroom. The wooden stairs creaked under the added weight. She really would have to repair those later.

Sakura, being herself, had the machine up and running in a matter of minutes, enjoying a cherry-flavored popsicle as she clicked through the menus. Thankfully she had received the display model, meaning that everything was set up for her, with tons of free trials for games and even already set up for wireless internet. She grinned as she clicked the mouse a few times.

It wasn't Sakura's first time using a computer, but it was her first one that she owned herself. She couldn't be prouder. She was sure her mother was sighing downstairs, sure that her daughter would become an internet addict. Too late.

To make sure the internet worked, she found a nearby wireless hotspot (she loved that she lived next to a café) and connected. Opening her browser, the welcome screen featured tips on how to get her started.

_I'm going to set up email later, too tedious to do that now…already know what the weather is…hm, what to do first? What to do…_

Internet was a fairly new thing in Konoha, just recently introduced thanks to the demands for better software in the hospital, and not many people had bought a computer yet. It was still a luxury to most, but her parents had secretly been saving up for months to get her one. She would be coking them dinner for weeks to express her gratitude.

_Oh! I could find out who else has signed on so far! Maybe Ino, her parents have money…I'll try looking through Chat first._

Konoha had just one chat hub, or so she had heard from the other hospital staff. It was mostly used by doctors to communicate between different areas of the building, or by vendors to suppliers outside the Fire Country. But there were certain rooms just for socializing, there had to be. _Let me see…_

The hospital ones were closed rooms, not that she needed those anyway. She caught sight of one labeled 'Social' and knew she had scored. With an excited little squeak, she opened it up.

Yes! There were people online! Well…okay, one. But one was good enough! Perhaps she could make a new friend. She sighed a little, though. This person's screen name didn't give any clues as to their identity, and she knew a pretty fair amount of people in the village. What kind of person had a screen name called Noir18? Creepy.

_Well, let's try it out anyway. What's the harm? _Choosing a random screen name completely off of the top of her head, she logged in and decided to at least say hello.

**Cherrylover2: Hey!**

**Cherrylover2: …**

**Cherrylover2: You there?**

**Noir18: Who are you?**

**Cherrylover2: You're from Konoha, aren't you?**

**Noir18: Yes…**

**Cherrylover2: Glad to meet someone from my area! **

**Noir18: I found this place by accident, still setting things up. Who are you?**

**Cherrylover2: Sorry, I don't give out personal information. I go by "Cherry" on the internet.**

**Noir18: Cherry? That sounds like a stripper name.**

**Cherrylover2: That is not—ohhh damn, it totally does. **

**Cherrylover2: D:**

**Cherrylover2: Ah well, too late now. **

**Cherrylover2: I officially don't have a name you can call me, haha.**

**Noir18: I don't give out my name either, so fair enough.**

Sakura clicked through the options on her profile, but her screen name was stuck. _I guess I could always just create a new profile next time I'm on here._

**Noir18: At least I know you're a girl.**

**Noir18: Or a really twisted guy, if you're calling yourself "Cherry."**

**Cherrylover2: Ha! I am most definitely a girl.**

**Noir18: I don't have time for girls.**

_Noir18 has set his status to 'Away.'_

**Cherrylover2: Ugh! Really?**

**Cherrylover2: Give me one good reason why you just ran like that.**

**Cherrylover2: I'm perfectly normal!**

**Noir18: Fine. A reason? **

**Cherrylover2: Yes. I knew you were still there.**

**Noir18: At the risk of sounding immature,_ girls are annoying. _**

**Cherrylover2: Wow, I see where you got your screen name from. Noir = black.**

**Cherrylover2: Black like your soul.**

**Noir18: You caught me.**

**Noir18: I also knock over little kids' ice cream cones for fun.**

Sakura snorted. This guy was interesting. He had a sense of humor, anyway.

**Cherrylover2: Do I get to guess at your identity at all? Are you a civilian?**

**Noir18: You just told me you don't give out your identity, and now you want to know mine? And you just pretty much gave away that you're ninja. **

**Cherrylover2: Just curious. Okay, just give me a hint. I might know you or your family in real life.**

**Noir18: You wouldn't know my family.**

**Cherrylover2: Oh, um.**

_Awkward._

**Cherrylover2: Do you have a large group of friends?**

It was a couple of minutes before she got a response.

**Noir18: Just one, really. Well, two, I guess.**

**Cherrylover2: Oh. Are you shy? **

**Noir18: Of course not. I just can't be bothered with most people.**

**Cherrylover2: Ha. That's kind of arrogant.**

**Noir18: No, most people are just idiots.**

**Cherrylover2: Ah.**

_It's Sasuke, it has to be, _Sakura thought. _No one else has that kind of smug reclusiveness. I know mostly everyone in Konoha, at least in passing. This is him! What are the chances? I didn't know he had a computer…_

Cherrylover2: Anyway, honestly, I'm normal. I promise not to annoy you. If I do, you can just sign off.

Cherrylover2: Deal?

Five minutes pass, and Sasuke had yet to send a message. Had he left?

**Cherrylover2: Hey! I said, do we have a deal?**

**Noir18: …fine. Agreed.**

**Cherrylover2: Yay! **

_Noir18 has signed off. _

Sakura leaned back in her chair. The simple use of the word 'yay' had driven him offline? Jeez. _People skills, Sasuke, _Sakura grumbled to herself. _People skills are good. _

_**-three weeks later-**_

Sakura had been talking to Sasuke every day for weeks. At first she was a bit unsure, but after he once mentioned a memory they both shared of a mission they'd taken, there wasn't a doubt left in her mind that it was him. Online, he was much more willing to talk, and she couldn't say she was unhappy about that. They were currently in a conversation yet again, and Sakura was running out of things to say. It was hard to keep up a conversation where one person didn't ask any questions.

**Cherrylover2: By the way, what's with the 18 at the end of your screen name? **

**Cherrylover2: Is that your age?**

**Noir18: Yes.**

**Noir18: What's with yours? Is that _your _age?**

**Cherrylover2: Oh, that was rude. **

Most of the time she didn't bother using emoticons. He knew by now when she was actually offended, and when she was just playing. Besides, putting three happy faces in a row when Sasuke was so serious and deadpan made her feel a bit silly.

**Cherrylover2: The sn required a number, so I threw the two in there, since it's my favorite number.**

**Cherrylover2: What's yours?**

**Noir18: …You have a favorite number? **

**Noir18: That's stupid. What's the point?**

**Cherrylover2: The same point as having a favorite color!**

**Cherrylover2: Now, what is it? Oh, _and_ your favorite color?**

**Noir18: Sigh. Now I have to answer both?**

**Cherrylover2: Hell yeah, you do!**

**Noir18: Annoying.**

Sakura grinned triumphantly when he hadn't signed off. Maybe he was loosening up a little.

**Noir18: My favorite color is green.**

**Cherrylover2: Really? I would have thought it'd be black.**

**Noir18: Black is not a color.**

Well, he kind of had a point there.

**Cherrylover2: Is too! It's all the colors at once, like when you mix all the paints together.**

**Noir18: No, that's white. Black is the absence of color.**

**Cherrylover2: …**

**Cherrylover2: Ugh, fine. Favorite number?**

**Noir18: I don't have one.**

**Cherrylover2: Why not? You should!**

**Noir18: There's no point to it.**

**Noir18: You're one of those people who organizes things in your house by that number, aren't you?**

**Cherrylover2: Maybe.**

**Noir18: You are so OCD.**

**Cherrylover2: OCD?**

Noir18: Obsessive-compulsive.

Sakura glanced around her bedroom and rested her gaze on her two matching lamps on either side of her bed. And her two perfectly lined up pillows resting against the headboard. And her two pencil-holders on her desk…which each held two pens and two pencils.

**Cherrylover2: Maybe.**

**Noir18: Called it.**

**Cherrylover2: Now you're the one who's annoying.**

**Noir18: What are you gonna do?**

**Noir18: Sign off?**

**Cherrylover2: Watch me.**

**Noir18: Ha. You wouldn't.**

_Cherrylover2 has signed off._

Sakura never did find out his favorite number.

AN: It starts…This one will only be focused on SasuSaku, and maybe NaruHina. I've never done a fic involving Naruto Hinata romance, so I might experiment here!


	2. Worth Respecting

Instant Messaging

AN: Okay, you guys told me what you wanted, and the results are in! I will try to include a little NaruHina in this fic, but SasuSaku will remain as the main pairing. Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I actually stopped putting these in on some other fics…and so far no one's said anything. Would anyone assume that I owned Naruto and sue me based on my work? I don't actually think so. Meh, better to have this up just in case.

Chapter Two

-o-

Sasuke silently made his way into the training grounds that morning, the air fresh and crisp on his skin. The day had just begun, and dew had settled on the grass below overnight, chilling his uncovered toes in his standard-issue sandals. It was a morning just like any other the team spent together. Kakashi had evidently developed a fondness for his team that lingered even after Sasuke's defection, so although they could take solo missions the group still met a couple of days every week. It wasn't easy for Sasuke to earn back his acceptance, but once he did Team 7 was stronger than it had ever been. He'd never say it, but he was incredibly grateful. He didn't know what he would have done if he had come back to no friends and no team; it wouldn't have been much of a life. Now he could finally accept that he had something with his team close to a family, and although he could never get the words of thanks out, he'd sooner die than leave the group.

A reminder of his late-night conversations hunched over in front of his computer monitor with Cherrylover2 popped into his mind, and he hid a small smile. Everything in his life he did with a purpose. His talks with her were probably the only thing he did for no real reason. He couldn't remember the last time he had done something simply for the fun of it. Actually, he had no idea how she'd roped him into starting now.

"Hey, Sasuke-kun!" Sakura called cheerfully as she ran toward him, energetic as always. He gave a small "Hn," for acknowledgement, and then promptly turned away from her. The fact that she still used the honorific attached to his name was proof that she still harbored something for him from the old days. Being standoffish was actually a favor to her, he knew. He shouldn't encourage her. Cool detachment was best; perhaps someday she'd forget the whole thing, the whole annoying infatuation would be over, and they could just be teammates. He considered her to be a friend, albeit a weak one that couldn't fight to save her life. Her hospital work ensured that they almost never went on missions together though, which was a relief.

Leaning against a tree, he closed his eyes and settled in to wait for Kakashi, which could take hours. He could get a little peace and quiet in before then.

-o-

Sakura's mood deflated a little at his gesture of rejection, but as always she picked herself back up and forced herself to stay cheerful. After all, whether he knew it or not, Sasuke was ignoring her by day but talking with her intently by night. For the first time, Sakura's secret made her feel like _she _had the upper hand.

Glancing quickly around, she unsurprisingly found the area devoid of any sign of Kakashi. Great. She was, however, a little surprised to find Naruto gone as well. His eagerness to begin training and see his friends usually meant he was the first one there. _Oh well._

Sakura had learned something during their last IM conversation. He didn't talk often of his teammates in case he gave anything away about his identity, but occasionally he would let something slip. It was during these slips that she gained a little insight into what he truly thought about them. The results were somewhat unsurprising. His rivalry with Naruto had evolved more into friendly competition, and his friendship with the blonde boy was unbreakable. It was kind of heartwarming to read about.

The things she found out about herself, however, were not so flattering. She knew they had hardly taken missions at all together since his return a year ago, let alone dangerous ones, but he really shouldn't be taking her so lightly. He hadn't caught a true glimpse of her skills since she was thirteen. Oh, sure, he knew that she could hit a target with deadly accuracy and her chakra control was perfect, the basic things she demonstrated in their training sessions. But as far as revealing her true strengths, like her brute force and mastery of genjutsu, he had no idea.

Sasuke still thought of her as a weak girl who had no business being a ninja. He gave her credit for being a healer, but the things he said about healing suggested to her that it wasn't as important to him as the offensive part of a team.

Not to mention the words "a silly crush from back in the genin days" had actually come up. Ouch. He thought so little of her. It took all she had not to get defensive with him. He still had no idea who she was in those conversations.

After nursing her bruised ego with some sake and staring at the ceiling allowing herself time to wallow in self-pity, she vowed to make him respect her. She promised herself that she would drop the honorific to his name, but it had slipped out so easily this morning. Force of habit. Damn.

So when it became obvious an hour later that Kakashi had slept in and wasn't going to make it, it didn't matter. She would train anyway.

_Let's see you think of me as weak again, Sasuke-kun, _Sakura thought determinedly, and then inwardly winced as she realized what she had called him. _Sasuke. I mean Sasuke. Just Sasuke. That's his name anyway._

"Well, I'll see you later then, Sasuke," she told him, forcing herself to say his unaltered name despite how odd it sounded on her tongue, waving a hand in his direction. She saw Sasuke turned to face her, surprised and puzzled. Evidently he had noticed the name change. But before she could feel awkward about it, she sprinted off into the forest.

-o-

Sakura blew out a hard breath as she threw a kunai at the target embedded in a tree trunk for the twentieth time in rapid-fire, knocking over the previous one she had hurled half a second ago. She had been practicing a basic skill, her aim—while standing upside down below a tree branch. This tested even her perfect chakra control, as she needed to concentrate both on her feet and the target at once. She had been at it for only ten minutes and already she felt drained. Too many long hours at the hospital and not enough exercising; her muscles were a bit lacking at the moment. _How long has it been since I've been on a proper mission?_

"Sakura," a deep male voice said from the branch above her. Sakura promptly lost her focus, and her feet detached from the branch.

"Eyaaaah!" she squealed, not so much from the fall as the strong hand that darted out and caught her ankle. Sakura promptly stopped her descent, swaying in midair.

"What are you doing?" Sasuke asked, gazing down at her with an eyebrow raised.

_Oh, this is dignified, _Sakura thought sarcastically as she swayed slightly to the left.

Sasuke pulled her up and set her down in front of him, waiting for an answer.

"Training," Sakura explained. "Kakashi-sensei's always late, so I figured I might as well put the time to good use, or else I'm just standing around doing nothing. Naruto hasn't shown up yet, has he?"

"Distracted by Ichiraku." Sasuke cast his gaze over to the small ramen stand, which he could see clearly from the height of the branch.

"Ah." Sakura brushed herself off, tugging on the front of her shirt to shake loose the fallen pine needles and small twigs gathered from her time upside down. She saw Sasuke move to jump down, hesitate, then look at her.

"Why the sudden decision?" he suddenly added, looking curious in spite of himself.

"I spend too much time at the hospital these days," Sakura replied simply. "I need to make sure my skills aren't getting too rusty." Best not to admit that she was showing off, especially considering the ungraceful end. "Believe it or not, Sasuke, I can fight, but don't get the chance as often as I used to." She tore her eyes away from him and glanced out over the treetops, brushing her hair back over her head with her hand.

She was surprised when he made a small sound that may or may not have been a 'huh' of amusement. He didn't believe her! His face gave nothing away, but she saw it in the slide of his gaze.

Unbelievable. For the first time in a long time, she kind of wanted to hit him at that moment.

"There are more ways to go on the offensive than just taijutsu or fancy ninjutsu, Sasuke," she said, taking care to speak clearly when she really wanted to just mutter it and clobber him.

"I never said anything else," Sasuke replied offhandedly, only fueling her anger more. That little jerk, she was going to beat some sense into him—

"I trust I'm not interrupting?" an adult voice spoke, and they both jumped. "I felt some killing intent over here."

"Kakashi-sensei!" Sakura cried out in recognition, relaxing a little. "N-no, we're fine. Just about to leave actually, thanks for deciding to show up and all."

Kakashi raised his hand in a salute, sitting lengthwise on the branch above the teenagers' heads. "Glad to perform a public service, educating the youths of today," he said with a smirk visible through his mask. His use of the word "youth" made her think he could cut back on his time with Gai-sensei just a little.

"Hn," Sasuke said before he stood up. He jumped effortlessly down from the tree, almost landing on a surprised Naruto as the boy arrived from Ichiraku.

"TEME!"

"Ah. Dobe."

-o-

**Cherrylover2: Hey again!**

**Noir18: Hey. **

**Cherrylover2: How was everything today?**

**Noir18: Fine. You?**

**Cherrylover2: Come on, I need a little more depth than _that_. **

**Cherrylover2: But my day was good, too.**

**Cherrylover2: Worked a little harder than usual today.**

**Noir18: Always good to get stronger.**

**Cherrylover2: Don't I know it. **

A few minutes passed, and Sakura struggled to find something to say while she filled her tea kettle with water and set it on the stove. However, by the time she returned to her desk, Sasuke had beaten her to it.

**Noir18: What's your reason for getting stronger?**

**Noir18: Everyone has a reason. What motivates you?**

Sakura sat back in her chair, surprised. Why had he asked that? Her mind flashed back to his curious question on the training grounds. Perhaps that was still on his mind in a way?

**Cherrylover2: Well…**

**Cherrylover2: For a lot of reasons, really. **

**Cherrylover2: I didn't have a lot of motivation when I started out. I joined the ninja academy for the wrong reasons, for some boy. **

**Cherrylover2: But after a while, I found that there was a certain respect in being a ninja. People view you differently. They see you as a protector. The image isn't always good, I mean, sometimes they also see us as people who just want to kill things or get out of an office job.**

**Cherrylover2: But there's a certain joy in being able to do things that others can't. If someone comes to the house to attack my family, I can protect them. I can literally punch through concrete walls to protect those I love. **

**Cherrylover2: That's an incredible feeling.**

Okay, so that was a lot more long-winded than he had probably asked for, but she couldn't help herself. It was a subject she was so passionate about. It was her reason for being. She couldn't imagine doing anything else.

**Noir18: You can punch through walls? What kind of huge arm muscles do you _have_ over there?**

Sakura threw her head back and laughed for a solid minute. She was beginning to like this rare sense of humor of his.

**Cherrylover2: Baka, it doesn't work like that.**

Just then, the tea kettle began to whistle, and Sakura got up to prepare herself a cup. She added just a spoonful of honey and slowly stirred, enjoying the peaceful ritual she did every day as the steam curled up to her face. Carefully bringing her mug back to her room supporting it with both hands, she glanced at the screen and found that Sasuke had been typing.

**Noir18: …I get your reasons for doing what you do. There was a time in my life where I couldn't protect the people I cared about. And I still…**

**Noir18: I just…**

**Noir18: I remember that feeling of being completely helpless. **

**Noir18: Of knowing that there's not a single thing you can do to stop it.**

Sakura set her teacup down and read his words three times over. She knew that over in the clan district of the village, Sasuke was sitting at his computer, thinking of his family. He never spoke about their deaths, not once. Perhaps he was only doing so now because writing the words on a screen was somehow non-threatening. Sakura felt privileged to be the one to see it, and her heart went out to him. She felt just a little guilt over not revealing her identity to him, but he would never have said this to his teammate. And now that he had opened up to her, he would never forgive her if he found out.

To Sasuke, Cherrylover2 would be his trusted friend, and now, his confidante. She would carry his secrets with her to the grave.

**Noir18: That's worth respecting. **

Seeing those three words appear on her monitor filled a hole within Sakura that she hadn't realized existed. Even though it wasn't real, even though it wasn't _Sakura_ he was talking to, his approval warmed her to the tips of her fingers. She knew that she shouldn't care so much about his approval. She was a strong ninja and woman in her own right, and she should feel complete and secure on her own. And she did, to a point.

But glancing at that one sentence again made her heart flip. She savored the feeling. She might not have had the feelings of infatuation that she once carried for him, but just now, a spark rose within her.

She suspected she was starting to like him. Actually admire, rather than the crush of her preteens. Not as the dark and brooding boy that she knew in her childhood, but as the confident, intense, sometimes funny man who talked to her for weeks behind a screen. This man cared for people, displayed actual emotions rather than the icy front he'd give in real life.

She hoped these conversations would never stop. And even though this one wasn't even done, she began to look forward to the next.


	3. 20 Questions is Never A Good Idea

AN: Hm, sometimes ffnet doesn't preserve my formatting, so some parts of the conversation aren't appearing in bold like they should. Sorry! Please ignore it when that happens.

Instant Message

Chapter Three

-o-

**Cherrylover2: Okay, my turn.**

**Cherrylover2: …**

_Cherrylover2 went idle at 10:21 PM._

**Noir18. Oi.**

**Cherrylover2: Oh! Sorry! Still thinking.**

**Noir18: Good, You'd better not leave in the middle of a conversation.**

**Cherrylover2: Haha, don't worry.**

**Cherrylover2: Okay, what's something about you that no one else knows?**

Sakura and Sasuke had been talking for quite some time that night, and during a lag in conversation they had reverted to the old standby: 20 questions. Who knew that Sasuke was the type to enjoy such a childish game?

**Noir18: I'm drinking tomato juice right now.**

**Cherrylover2: Hey! That's not a secret!**

**Noir18: You didn't say it had to be earth-shattering.**

**Cherrylover2: Hmph. Fine.**

**Cherrylover2: Your turn.**

**Noir18: What's something about you that no one else knows?**

**Cherrylover2: Copycat.**

**Noir18: I haven't asked it yet.**

**Cherrylover2: I despise tomato juice.**

**Noir18: Ouch. Are you just saying that to spite me, or is it true?**

**Cherrylover2: Haha, sorry, but it's true. I drink tea. Pretty much all the time. **

**Cherrylover2: Who's your favorite person to talk to through chat? I haven't seen too many people on here besides a couple of my friends.**

**Noir18: I only talk to you.**

Well. That made her smile a little bit. Nice to know he wasn't chatting up some other girl on Konoha Chat while they talked, that felt a little wrong. _Is it wrong? I feel as though that'd be a little weird. _

**Noir18: All right, I've thought of one.**

**Noir18: What do you think about the people close to you?**

Sakura couldn't help but be a little paranoid. In the off chance that he had figured out her identity or was starting to suspect, she would have to be very careful how she worded her response here.

**Cherrylover2: Why do you ask?**

**Noir18: It's not your turn to ask a question yet.**

**Cherrylover2: Still!**

**Noir18: Honestly?**

**Noir18: Friends are hard to come by for me. I'd like to compare my experience to someone else's. **

**Cherrylover2: You're wondering if you're normal? **

**Noir18: Something to that effect. **

Now Sakura really didn't know what to say. What about her team's relationship could be considered normal? It was so dysfunctional at times it was a wonder Tsunade hadn't forcibly disbanded them when Sasuke came back. There was a lot of lingering bitterness they had needed to work through. Sasuke being cold to her most days was enough to ruin her week sometimes, especially when she was trying so hard to forgive him for leaving her, for leaving them all. And just when she thinks it's better and things are back to the way they were before, he'll spar too hard and Naruto will end up with a broken leg, or she'll move to punch him and it'll resurface a memory of trying to bring him back.

Nothing about her team was normal.

But what could she say to him? He'd never know it was her, so really she could say whatever she wanted without consequence.

Right?

**Cherrylover2: *thinking***

**Cherrylover2: Okay, I'll be completely honest.**

**Cherrylover2: So don't tell anyone, okay? **

**Noir18: Just get on with it.**

Sakura bit her lip as she typed nervously. She just couldn't paint a happy picture of a team for him. If she was going to help him at all, he needed to know that normal doesn't always mean perfect.

**Cherrylover2: Well, one of them I used to find incredibly annoying, but I've secretly come to respect him a lot. Despite his odd personality, he holds a strength that I really admire.**

**Noir18: Any others?**

**Cherrylover2: Yeah, one more.**

**Cherrylover2: Well, the other one I'm a bit confused about.**

**Cherrylover2: How to put this into words…**

She decided just to type and see what came out. Did she really even know what she thought of him anymore? Who knows what would spill out onto the keyboard?

**Cherrylover2: Okay, here goes.**

**Cherrylover2: Sometimes I think he's the most important person to me in the world. But other times…**

**Cherrylover2: I hate him.**

**Noir18: Why?**

**Cherrylover2: There's just too many times that I wonder why I think of him the way I do. Why I respect him so much.**

**Cherrylover2: But the truth is, most of the time, I can't find a reason. I just do.**

**Cherrylover2: And this frustrates me so much that I don't know what to do with myself except continue to think about him in the same way.**

That definitely wasn't what she expected to say. But as she hit the send button again and again, she realized it was all true. She hadn't truly healed over. She didn't know what to make of him anymore.

Now, the interesting part would be what he'd have to say about the whole thing.

**Noir18: You can't think of a reason at all? Does he not treat you well? **

_Ha! If only he knew._

_Okay, that was kind of bitter,_ she admitted.

**Cherrylover2: It's not like that. We get along, but it's just…there's history. We're all a bit messed up.**

**Noir18: Ah. **

**Cherrylover2: You know, being a ninja, things happen.**

She added this as an aside, to create some distance from the whole thing. This was getting way too personal. Any more and he might start getting too specific with his questions.

**Noir18: Yes, they do.**

**Noir18: Thank you. I'm not sure how much that helps me, but thank you. **

**Cherrylover2: Haha, yeah, I'm not the best person to ask about 'normal.'**

Cherrylover2: Oh, great, Mom's yelling for me to get downstairs, she needs me for something. Talk to you tomorrow?

**Noir18: Of course. **

_C2 signed off at 10:42 PM._

-o-

"Okay, today we'll be practicing more chakra control," Kakashi said. "This will teach you not to break concentration during a battle. This will resemble the tree-walking I taught you as children, except this time you'll be walking slowly and I'll be doing everything I can to distract you along the way."

"Aw, crap," Naruto moaned, causing Sasuke to smirk. He didn't have a prayer of winning this. Sasuke was going to have to set aside his rivalry for one day; this was just going to be too easy.

"Naruto, you first," Kakashi instructed. Naruto's eyes grew to the size of ramen bowls.

"Kakashi-sensei!" he complained. "Why am I going first?"

"Dobe," Sasuke mumbled lazily in response. "You'll lose the fastest, so you're first."

Fire lit in Naruto's eyes, and Sasuke was proud to find he had struck a nerve. Good, let him try harder then.

"Sasuke!" the blonde shouted, pointing a quivering finger at him furiously. "I'll beat you, you just wait!"

Kakashi, who looked utterly bored, waved him over. "Use this tree," he said, gesturing toward it, "and I'll walk up the one next to it. Remember, I'll try to distract you along the way. Walk slowly. It takes greater chakra control for you to do so."

Naruto nodded self-confidently, a large grin unfurling on his lips. Competition had won him over yet again. Sasuke watched the pride on his friend's face and sighed. It was almost sad.

"Start."

Naruto placed an unsteady foot on the trunk of the tree, and began his ascent. His grin widened as he climbed higher. Within five seconds, he was ten feet above the ground.

Sasuke watched Kakashi wait until Naruto reached twenty feet before the teacher made his move. He vanished and reappeared on a branch level to Naruto's position.

"Naruto! Ichiraku is giving away free ramen!" he shouted.

The boy's head snapped in Kakashi's direction. "What? The old man said no one ever got freebies!" Far too late Naruto realized his mistake. His feet, now detached from the tree trunk, failed to hold him there any longer, and before Naruto could grasp the tree trunk he had landed roughly on his back.

"Owowowow!" Naruto cried as he immediately sat up and rubbed his back vigorously. "Sensei, that was just mean. You so owe me ramen later…"

Kakashi hid a smile. Some things never changed.

"Sasuke, you're next."

Wordlessly stepping up to the tree trunk, Sasuke waited for the signal.

"Start."

Sasuke started walking, his pace slow and steady, his movements calm. He was ready for anything his teacher could throw at him.

Kakashi raised his hands and made a quick seal. "Henge!" Kakashi's form was replaced by an exact replica of Naruto in a customary puff of smoke. The fake Naruto gave a cheesy grin, and began walking up his own tree.

"Hey, Sasuke-teme!" he cried gleefully. "You know you won't make it! You wanna know why? Cuz you'll never beat me! I'll become the next Hokage, and you'll stay at home crying cuz I'm great and you're not!"

"Wow…" Sasuke heard Sakura murmur from the forest floor. "He's good."

"He is not!" the real Naruto said indignantly. "He makes me sound like a kid!" At Sakura's disbelieving look, Naruto jumped up onto the tree next to Sasuke's. "You want a distraction, Sasuke? I'll give you one!"

"Stupid!" Naruto jeered, pulling his lips back with his fingers and blowing a raspberry. "Tomato-freak! Chicken hair!"

A vein popped on Sasuke's forehead, but he ignored it. One Naruto had been enough, but now two? He was confident he would make it, but he didn't know how much longer he could stand this without sending a well-deserved kunai towards one of them.

He could ignore this. No problem. Though that constant name-calling was starting to get on Sasuke's nerves…and the fact that the annoying ball of energy had now doubled only made it twice as hard to bite back a retort. _Calm, Sasuke, _he told himself. _Act like this is a mission._

_If this were a mission, I would have killed Naruto already for giving away our location._

"Sasuke!" The Kakashi-Naruto called. "When I'm Hokage, I'll finally have beaten you! You lose! Lose lose LOSE!"

The real Naruto suddenly straightened and glared at Kakashi. "I do _not _act like that," he said.

"Baka," Sakura called from the ground. "You act exactly like that."

Sasuke landed perfectly on his feet next to Sakura. "Made it," he stated. Kakashi smiled and then transformed back into his usual tall, lazy self.

"Congratulations, Sasuke," he said. "You did well. I'll be challenging you more next time." Naruto harrumphed behind him as he too jumped to the ground but said nothing.

"And Sakura?" Kakashi turned his eye toward her. She grinned.

"Ready when you are." She approached the trunk and bounced lightly on her toes, looking entirely sure of herself.

"Now, Sakura, I'm going to have to turn it up a notch for you because of your precise chakra control," Kakashi warned. "I know it's going to take more to break your focus."

"Don't worry, sensei, I can handle it," came Sakura's response.

"All right. But if I go overboard or too far, stop me."

"Sensei, when have I ever failed a focus test?"

Sasuke thought back to yesterday, when just landing next to her was enough to make her fall off of the branch. He thought about saying so (she looked way too full of herself), but decided it wasn't worth the effort of speaking up.

She was on the trunk before her teacher had even said "Start." She smiled cheerfully as she walked, and Sasuke briefly wondered what Kakashi would do. There were very few things that truly got her riled up enough to break her concentration, and Kakashi was fortunate enough to know every one of them. His eyes flickered over to Kakashi's, and found him frowning, as though deciding whether or not to go through with it. And if Sasuke was right in his suspicions, he wasn't going to like it.

"Sakura…" Kakashi whispered after he transformed. _Of course he would go there. He needs to hit her where it hurts. _Sasuke observed Sakura tense at the voice, but she obviously expected it and her stride went unbroken. Now the only question was, what in the world would Kakashi do to try to get her attention?

"Sakura, want to go on a date with me?" Kakashi, as Sasuke, asked her in a smooth voice. Sakura glared, but kept walking without looking at him. Sasuke saw Kakashi flash Sakura an apologetic look, and knew this was only going to get worse. In an instant, Kakashi was behind her, inches away, effectively stopping her in her tracks.

"Come on, Sakura," the fake Sasuke whispered into her ear, making sure she could feel his breath on her neck. By now she was too far up for the real Sasuke to clearly see her expression from his place on the ground. Would she fall?

He looked up at them, disgusted with Kakashi for pulling something like this using his likeness. Kakashi had no shame, did he? He wasn't going to deal with this if Sakura started acting oddly after today. Kakashi was opening old wounds, he should be prepared for the consequences.

He kept his gaze upwards, though, partly curious as to what Sakura would do. She hadn't fallen yet, and this surprised Sasuke the most. She hadn't managed to lose her grip on that tree yet, despite her feelings and the fact that Kakashi was going to such obvious lengths to catch her off guard.

"Sakura…" Kakashi whispered, sliding the pad of his finger over her shoulder, "I really like you…"

"_Get away from me!_" Sakura screamed, taking a kunai out and swinging it furiously at the pretender behind her. Kakashi was gone in an instant as he appeared back on his own tree, but he looked just as surprised by Sakura's actions as the real Sasuke did.

Sakura's eyes flashed, reflecting an emotion Sasuke could only identify as utter loathing. For the first time in months, Uchiha Sasuke was confused. Sakura had never behaved like this before, especially not where it concerned Sasuke.

When he returned from outside the Fire Country to rejoin the village, it was she who kept a smile on her face and helped glue the team back together. She never once faltered or showed anything other than the occasional flash of sadness. He never thought much about that, though, as there was plenty to be sad about. He was sorry for leaving, he was, and sorry for hurting someone who cared for him so much. But she seemed to stitch herself back up faster than either of the boys, and as far as Sasuke knew she was happy and normal again.

This girl up in the tree, though, was different. Her whole body was shaking in anger. No tears were visible on her face, just a livid expression that he'd never seen before, and certainly never thought he'd see aimed in his direction.

What was wrong with her?

Sakura still stood there, breathing heavily, her arm still outstretched while gripping her kunai tightly in her hand. As if she suddenly realized what she was doing, she straightened her posture and slipped the blade back into its holster. Without another word, she continued her journey to the top of the tree, Kakashi doing nothing more to stop her. Within seconds, she touched the uppermost branch, and slid down.

She turned around when she reached the bottom, and Sasuke saw a mask completely wiped of emotion. No flush across her cheeks, no unsteady breathing. For all anyone could tell, nothing had happened at all.

He began to understand that perhaps Sakura hadn't healed faster at all. She was simply the best liar out of all of them.

Kakashi wisely spoke up. "I think that's enough practice for today. Naruto, make sure you continue to train on this, as your concentration seems to be…lacking. Sasuke, keep up the good work. Sakura, I'm impressed. You were distracted, and yet you still managed to keep yourself upright. Excellent multitasking. "

Naruto's face burned with the remark, but he said nothing. He looked over at his female teammate, his irritation replaced with curiosity and concern.

"Sa-Sakura-chan," he started, but Sakura held up a hand to cut him off.

"I'm heading home, you guys," she said, trying to smile, but it was all too obvious that she could not manage it. "I'll see you later."

She was gone. Naruto's eyes followed her as she left; unaware that Sasuke's were doing the same. Both were curious as to how Kakashi had spurred such a reaction from Sakura. She was _angry_? Surreal.

Sasuke held back for a moment after Naruto and Kakashi left, taking a walk around the training grounds as he always did when he had a bit of thinking to do. For a brief, impossibly mad moment, he imagined himself going after her to see if she was all right. Then he shook his head and continued on. It was best to just leave her alone, his presence would probably only make things worse.

AN: Updated! Thanks to all who reviewed, I love you guys so much! Please keep it up!


	4. Lying Is the Most Fun A Girl Can Have

AN: Back again, with another chapter! It's absolutely amazing how many reviews I've received for this story; just mind-blowing. Thanks so much, and enjoy the chapter!

Instant Message

Chapter Four

Sasuke reached his home, and sunk onto his midnight fabric couch. He allowed his weight to melt into the cushion, and he brushed his bangs away from his face lazily. He was in no mood to go anywhere after the incident this morning, lest he bump into a certain person he really did not want to talk to at the moment. Sakura always wandered around the village on her down time, and if Sasuke ventured out of his house he was sure to run into her. After what had happened earlier, a meeting of that sort could not go well.

Sighing, he rolled over. Might as well take a nap. It didn't matter that he was still fully clothed, or that there were no blankets near the couch. An Uchiha could sleep on the floor and it wouldn't matter.

He shut his eyes tightly, as though trying to force sleep to overcome him. Unfortunately, this had no effect at all. Instead an image of pink hair and a wide, bright smile flashed through his mind. His eyes snapped open, and he wondered vaguely why _she _of all people would take up residence inside his mind. Great. His eyelids drooped again, but this time Sakura's picture was moving; she was swinging a kunai with as much force as her small body could muster at their teacher. "_Get away from me!" _she had screamed.

"Argh," Sasuke moaned as he sat upright. He would never get to sleep with the pink-haired girl still fresh in his mind.

Well, he could at least go train. Sakura, he knew for a fact, never set foot in the training grounds after practice hours. At least there he could sharpen his skills in peace and hope that the training would take his mind off of his ex-fangirl and her issues. Anything was better than thinking too much about it. If he did that, he found he started to feel guilty at being the cause, and he couldn't have that.

-o-

Sakura sprinted around the track until her limbs grew exhausted. Soon, her body would collapse on its own. All of her anger and frustration and hurt had been stomped into the ground with each step she took. There was nothing nearby she could destroy, so venting through exercise was the next best thing. Kakashi was probably right to cut the training short, after the tension of what had happened, but Sakura really had no intention of going back home. Instead she waited for the rest of Team Seven to leave before returning to the grounds on her own.

Kakashi had to play hard-ball with her, she knew that. She wasn't angry with him for taking it too far. She was, however, angry with herself for the way she had lost it back there. It was a case of action before thought; she had no idea she was going to react with violence until Kakashi was gone and the kunai was out. It was so instinctual that Sakura wondered at the depth of her scars.

Sure, it felt good to get that all out, but boy, was she going to feel the after-effects of it in the morning. Her calves were screaming at her for pushing them too hard, and she was pretty sure she had pulled a hamstring. She knew she could just pass a hand over them and heal them in minutes, but right now she didn't want to. Her discomfort was proof of her hurt. She needed to deal with that eventually, just like she'd deal with the healing.

Just not right now, she was far too tired. She would take a short break, and then start again. Sakura allowed herself to rest her back against the nearest fir tree, and she slid down the trunk until she came to rest at the bottom. She was exhausted.

Her face relaxed, and sleep took her in a haze before she even realized it was coming. _Oh, well. _It was just a short rest anyway, right? In about ten minutes, she'd wake up and continue.

Sasuke jogged to the training grounds, readying his mind for some hard work. If he wasn't in the proper mood, he would be distracted more easily. He could not afford to let that happen.

He reached the usual spot past the bridge. _Today's the perfect weather for jutsu practice. _He found it rather frustrating that he only knew a few jutsus more than what he knew a year ago. It was a miracle Kakashi had rounded them up again as a team, after they had broke apart so long ago. It was a rare occasion that Sasuke could manage to catch Kakashi on his own for some private lessons. Today, Sasuke noted with a sigh, was not one of those days. So all he could do at the moment was brush up on his latest techniques.

The last one Kakashi taught him was a water technique; Sasuke supposed he had taught him a pretty harmless jutsu on purpose, just to spite him. All it did was create a nearly useless wave of water that was no stronger than a wave at the beach. An experienced shinobi would not even lose his footing.

Sasuke smirked. He could at least work on strengthening it. Sure, it was intended to be a minor attack, but then again Sasuke was never one for minor attacks. He would turn this into something to be feared.

_Okay, I'll get this on the first try, _he thought with confidence. _Concentrate the chakra…_he put forth about six times more chakra than was necessary for this technique, in the hopes that it would grow to be much stronger. "_Focus on the fingertips, as if you're pushing it away from you towards your opponent," _Kakashi had instructed. He would do so much better than just that.

Tiger, horse, ram…Sasuke made the hand seals in quick succession, and cried out the technique name as he spread his arms wide. The water was there, rising slowly up in front of him, but it was not over yet. _Concentrate…_He gathered all of his power, and glared at the wave as he willed it to grow. Much to his satisfaction, it began to swell up, more than a fourth larger than before. He really was succeeding on the first try. He knew he would.

_Pink hair? _His thoughts alerted him. Indeed, the color pink was visible against the tree opposite him at the edge of the clearing, very out of place amongst the green foliage. Sakura was here?! After he had carefully avoided the main streets to get here, he still runs into her? _Great. _Sasuke practically growled. At least she was sleep. He could sneak away without even waking her.

Only one problem.

The wave was building to three times his height, and just his luck, Sakura had broken his concentration just enough for him to release the wave.

Sasuke leapt toward her with the intention of carrying her away from the path of the wave. Who knew what it would do once it reached her. It certainly looked powerful enough to cause some damage. He secured his arms around her, and turned just in time to stare at the wall of water barely four feet in front of him.

There was no getting out of this.

Sasuke held Sakura closer and braced himself as he gritted his teeth. What a way for Sakura to wake up. Sasuke just hoped that it wouldn't be in a hospital bed.

And then the water came, rushing over them and drenching every inch of them. Sasuke steeled himself further, and almost fell forward in the process. Wait…forward? Sasuke opened his eyes, not caring that he was now very much under the water. He and Sakura were right in the middle of it, and yet…there was nothing.

Guess the wave wasn't as powerful as he thought.

Sure, it was bigger, but no matter how much chakra he put behind it, it was just a wave in the end. Still completely useless.

"Sa-Sasuke?" Sakura cried out in alarm as they surfaced, coughing and spluttering. Damn it.

"Jutsu got out of control," Sasuke muttered to her. Yes; "out-of-control jutsu" sounded so much cooler than "pathetic wave got away from me."

"O-oh, I see," Sakura replied shakily, still attempting to regain her bearings. Let's see: she was in Sasuke's arms, both of them drenching wet, because she had fallen asleep and Sasuke had come along to train and had unleashed a water jutsu? Okay…

"Well, thanks for saving me," she added awkwardly. "Although judging by the impact, it wouldn't have hurt that much by the time it got to me."

Sasuke could feel his face burning as his pride took a hit. Ouch. Pathetic. A jutsu that couldn't even hurt Haruno Sakura. God, how he wanted to just set the girl down and wreak havoc on everything around them to calm his temper.

Speaking of setting her down…

Sasuke made the mistake of glancing at her again as Sakura flushed. Apparently they were both realizing their position at the same time, Sakura's slim frame clutched tightly to Sasuke's chest. Both were drenched in such a way that suddenly, everything that could be counted as clothing stuck to their bodies. Sasuke held back a string of curses as he tried to look away, but not before he noticed the stream of water sliding from Sakura's hair down to her chin, which then slid down to her chest. If this wasn't straight out of a romance manga…

"Sasuke," Sakura suddenly spoke up, and for some reason Sasuke noticed a frown on her face. "I think I'm out of danger now." This was a fairly obvious hint that it was time to let her go now. Wordlessly, Sasuke dropped her onto the ground, not bothering to do it gracefully. Sakura landed unceremoniously on her bottom in the muddy water, and she scowled at him.

"You could have at least set me down nicely, Sasuke-kun," she said. Sasuke, still a bit disturbed by what had happened, merely shrugged like he didn't have a care in the world and stood up.

"I'm going," he told her as he brushed off the damp fabric of his sleeve. Sakura stared up at him, the angry look fading from her face. She surprised him as she grabbed his hand and pulled herself up. He hadn't offered it.

"Me too." Sakura turned away from him to look for her medical pack, which was most likely washed away by the wave. She spotted it thankfully only a few yards away, hooked on a branch, and jogged over to retrieve it.

"Sakura," she heard her name as she looped it through her hand and glanced at him.

Sasuke turned back toward the village, unable to look at her, not knowing how to ask but suddenly unable to stop himself.

"Do you hate me?"

Her footsteps stopped as she froze behind him. Just for a moment. Then she slung her pack over her shoulder and walked right past him. She was silent, Sasuke noticed. Why?

"Of course I don't hate you," Sakura said over her shoulder as she suddenly passed him, not bothering to stop. "You know that I love you."

Any other time, Sasuke would not have cared about her proclamation. It was certainly not the first time he'd heard it. But this was so offhanded, almost automatic. Her tone didn't change at all from one syllable to the next.

It sounded like she was lying.

Everyone knew Sakura was a good liar. She had even fooled Kakashi once or twice, and he went out for beers with Morino Ibiki. And after that blank mask he had seen on her face when she came down from that tree earlier, he only found himself confused.

"You're lying."

He heard her gasp. She spun around and looked him carefully in the eye, as though trying to figure out just what she was going to say next.

"Sasuke," Sakura started. "Really. I don't hate you."

"Not about that," Sasuke told her. "Although that might be a lie, too."

"You don't love me anymore."

Instead of surprise gracing Sakura's features, her gaze hardened. He knew nothing.

"What, just because I stopped using 'kun' at the end of your name? We're not kids anymore, Sasuke."

Sasuke's eyebrows rose. How unlike her to be snapping at him. Maybe, though, he had just never bothered to notice her changes as she grew over the years. He still had that impression of her from when they were twelve, and then he went and left the village and failed to notice that he came back to someone who was turning out to be a completely different person.

Sakura exhaled sharply, running a hand through her bangs. "I don't…I don't hate you. But I also don't have the same infatuation I had with you back then. That's good. That's what you wanted."

"You don't want off the team." Her eyes widened at that. It wasn't posed as a question, but it was a question all the same.

"No, of course not, Sasuke. You're still one of my best friends. I just…I don't know, we went through a lot. You left, it's a fact of life." He inwardly cringed at that, but let her continue. "I can't say that I'm totally over it, because what kind of teammate, friend, _whatever_ just leaves you like that?" Her voice was rising, and he watched her struggle to bring it back down.

A long pause.

"I…I just have a bit to deal with. I don't really even know what I feel about you right now."

Something pulled at the back of his mind at that, a tiny ringing bell.

"Anyway, I have to go." She must have decided that he wasn't going to say anything back, and turned to leave.

"I'm sorry," Sasuke said quietly, stopping her again. What stretched after was one of the longer silences he'd encountered in his life. Hell, he really wasn't used to admitting things.

"I don't really know what you're sorry for," Sakura whispered.

The breeze drifting through the clearing was starting to chill his wet clothes, but he hardly noticed.

"For everything," he replied simply, and disappeared.

-o-

-o-

Sasuke could have signed onto Chat that night. He could have gone online and enjoyed a long conversation about nothing important with his friend across the screen. But tonight was a little different. Something was just not right, and he had to see it for himself.

One thing he was very thankful for was that Konoha Chat kept a history of its users' past conversations. Quickly finding the one he wanted, he pulled it up and scrolled through the contents.

When he found what he was looking for, he read the words over and over again. It was lucky coincidence, maybe. He couldn't be sure. The conversation was worded completely differently, and plenty of ninja experienced trauma. Everyone had scars. Still, he perused the section for ten minutes, wondering.

Just wondering.

**Cherrylover2: Well, the other one I'm a bit confused about.**

**Cherrylover2: Sometimes I think he's the most important person to me in the world. But other times…**

**Cherrylover2: I hate him.**

**Cherrylover2: There's just too many times that I wonder why I think of him the way I do. Why I respect him so much.**

**Cherrylover2: But the truth is, most of the time, I can't find a reason. I just do.**

**Cherrylover2: And this frustrates me so much that I don't know what to do with myself except continue to think about him in the same way.**

"'_I…I just have a bit to deal with. I don't really even know what I feel about you right now.'"_

It was entirely possible that this wasn't the same girl. And their behaviors were different. The girl online had a response for everything, and the things she said were well-worded and deliberate. Sakura had a way of just blurting out whatever came to mind. Cherrylover2 struck him as someone who was more mature and put-together, and could apparently punch through walls. The Sakura he knew couldn't attack much of anything.

His hypothetical reasoning took him onto a bit of an upsetting train of thought as he read on with a set of new eyes. Just in case.

**Noir18: You can't think of a reason at all? Does he not treat you well? **

_You can't think of a single reason why you respect him?_

If it all turned out to be true, then this girl wouldn't be painting a very flattering picture for him. If it was in fact Sakura at all, the person she made him out to be wasn't one who cared much for his teammate. And it was fairly true, he didn't mind keeping his distance if it meant getting rid of her genin crush. It just never really bothered him…until now. Silly crush or not, their bond was real and he still very much cared for her.

He found himself truly hoping that it wasn't her. Because if it was, he'd have to look at her the next day they had training and know exactly what she thought of him.

By facing her, he'd have to face himself.

Would he tell her that it was him, that he was Noir18? No, never. He'd said things to her that he had never told anyone. Sakura wasn't the type who could handle that if she had learned that the secrets she held were his. If Cherrylover2 _were _her, he would close out his profile immediately and that would be that. She would never have to know.

-o-

AN: Okay, this was the part where I pretty much completely changed the chapter. Before it was lighter, a tad unrealistic and shoujo-ish, and now I'm introducing emo stuff like scars from their past and all that drama. Hope you can bear with me! Thank you all so much for reviewing!


	5. Well That Escalated Quickly

Instant Message

Chapter Five

-o-

Training passed quickly that morning without incident, as Kakashi only put them through the regular basic drills, pushups here, laps there. The real surprise, however, came when he informed them of a mission.

"Now," he said to the team importantly, "This is only a D-class mission," to which Naruto groaned loudly, "so it should only last a few hours. But tedious or not, I fully expect you all to perform your best. That means you, Naruto." Naruto's apathetic look vanished, and he shook his head, grinning.

"Kakashi-sensei, don't I always do great on missions?"

"The dog-walking mission, the weed-pulling mission, the cat retrieval mission," Sakura said immediately, ticking her points off on her fingers as she spoke.

"Okay, okay! I get it," Naruto grumbled.

"Why are we being assigned a D-rank? We're nearly eligible for A-class now," Sasuke felt the need to point out. "Just because we had to miss the last jounin exam on that mission doesn't mean we still need to do these."

"Because during peacetime there's a shortage of good missions, and I need an excuse to keep you busy," declared Kakashi in deadpan. Sasuke could think of much better things to be doing with his time, but today he didn't care enough to fight it.

"So what's the mission?" he muttered.

"Glad you asked," Kakashi said as he smiled at them. "Today we'll be pairing off and scouting out caves behind Tojira-san's house. She suspects that the bats are eating her raspberry plants at night."

"Something's always after her stupid plants," Naruto commented glumly.

"Too true," Kakashi surprisingly agreed. "Anyway, there are two tunnels. Naruto, use your kage bunshin and you can take them out fairly quickly using any method necessary. Sasuke, your Goukakyuu no jutsu should roast them in no time. And Sakura, you'll be with me. We'll pick them off with kunai."

"Oi! What's with the pairing arrangements?" Naruto complained loudly. "I'm stuck with Sasuke-teme!"

"Is that a problem?" Kakashi asked tiredly.

"His Goukakyuu no jutsu is going to dispel half my clones. Putting me with him doesn't work at all."

"Fair enough. Naruto…"

"I'll get to be with Sakura-chan!" Naruto interjected happily.

"You'll be paired with me."

"Wait, what?" Naruto's head snapped back to his.

"My skills will work with yours just fine. Sakura, go with Sasuke."

"And just what am I supposed to do with the bats with a giant fireball in my way?" Sakura blurted out angrily. Kakashi looked momentarily surprised; she wasn't usually one to complain.

"You possess greater tactical intelligence than these two. Find a way to work around his jutsu to be the most effective."

Sasuke heard Kakashi's placating tone and knew he was trying to butter her up with a compliment to her intelligence. Sakura fell silent, but the look on her face said she wasn't buying it for a second. She was still obviously affected by yesterday's events. He didn't quite know what to make of it. Should he say something to fix it? Normally he wouldn't have bothered, but if her issues were going to get in the way of her missions…

"I trust that after the first thirteen missions Tojira-san's given us, you know where to find her house." Kakashi's eye crinkled in humor as his team groaned at the mention of all the other missions they had had to do for the old bat. Sasuke secretly hoped that someday those raspberry plants would die just to save them the aggravation of trying to keep them alive. Perhaps he'd get fed up and roast them himself one day.

As Sakura walked by, he heard her muttering to herself. She was in a horrible mood.

"M'gonna roast those plants myself if we have to do this again."

Against his better judgment, Sasuke let out the faintest trace of a chuckle, surprised that her thinking was so spot-on with his. Sakura glanced at him once, then away again, walking ahead.

"Let's just go."

-o-

Sakura found the caves easily, and Sasuke was not far behind. It was a network of tunnels that started with two openings not far from the client's back yard. They took the right cave, while Naruto and Kakashi headed into the left one, although they were delayed by Tojira spotting them and demanding specific instructions to be carried out, such as placing the dead bats into her wheelbarrow for proper disposal. Sakura was infinitely glad that she had been supposedly out of earshot. Like hell was she picking up dead bats. She was not getting paid enough for this.

Despite it being a warm and sunny day, all the heat dissolved the further into the cave the two traveled, until it turned slightly chilly. Sakura rubbed her arms as she walked, and scanned the ceiling for any sign of bats. It was so dim in here, she could hardly see anything. But from what she could hear, they were too close to the cave entrance to find anything living.

"Katon! Goukakyuu no jutsu!" she heard Sasuke yell as flame erupted from his mouth. The expansive cave lit up in front of them, and thankfully many of the plants growing in the dark out of the cracks in the rock caught fire, so the tunnel was well lit. Not a trace of a bat appeared, though. Sakura thought he knew better than to waste chakra simply to light it up. They had sharpened senses for getting through without the aid of sight.

"Sasuke, why did you do that?" she asked, unable to contain her curiosity. "You knew there weren't any bats around yet."

"You were cold," he stated shortly, and her eyes widened. "And it would be better to light the place up to disturb the bats instead of catching them by surprise."

She let out the softest "Oh," and hurried on before she could think on it too much. Sasuke doing something nice for her was out of character. Maybe she'd been a bit too obvious in her anger at Kakashi earlier. _Emotion control, damn it, _she berated herself. The day that _Sasuke_ starts showing concern is the day you realize you've come a bit unhinged.

Sakura turned a corner down a slight slope, and stopped. The light wasn't as obvious from this distance, and the dimness was just enough to make sure that the creatures in this area went undisturbed.

_There are bats in this section, _Sakura thought. She could hear the faint rustling above her as one or two of them minutely shifted. Grasping five kunai from her holster, she concentrated on locating the little animals, and then released them. Sure, Sasuke's technique would be a bit more effective on a widespread scale, but Sakura was in the mood to kill something right now, and Kami-sama knew he was going to take all the credit when they were done.

Sasuke rounded the corner just as five bats dropped from the ceiling, kunai embedded in every one of them. Sakura stood not five feet in front of him, and though he could not see her he knew she was smiling in satisfaction.

"Five down," Sasuke said carelessly as he pushed ahead of her. Her smile dropped. _This _was why she couldn't love him anymore. Rude, thoughtless, completely ignorant. Oblivious to basically everything she had dedicated her life to during his absence. Jerk, jerk, jerk.

"Katon! Goukakyuu no jutsu!" Sasuke cried out as he sensed the presence of more targets. In one breath, he took out the rest of the furry creatures, and one by one they landed, shriveled, on the ground. Sakura hastily averted her eyes. Ugh, she hated this. Especially the smell. She was going to give Kakashi an earful later for pairing her with Mr. Barbecue.

They continued their search, going deeper and deeper into the cave and taking out small groups of bats along the way. Sakura's kunai were dead-on, a feat she never would have achieved back in their genin days. And each time she hit her targets flawlessly, Sasuke said nothing, only trudged ahead as if she had missed them all. Why wouldn't he at least acknowledge that she had gotten better? Why would he still speak of her in those online conversations like she was a hindrance? The girl seethed behind him, but refused to let him know that she was angry. That would be petty.

"Katon!"

"Oh, for Kami-sama's sake, Sasuke, it doesn't have to be a light show every time you sense one bat!" Sakura yelled out, exasperated. Oops. That was definitely petty.

Sasuke turned to face her, incredulous. "It's the quickest way to get rid of them," he said in defense.

"But it's not the most efficient," she argued. "It uses up a lot of chakra, and that's completely unnecessary for a D-rank mission." Sasuke snorted. It was a D-rank mission. It shouldn't matter how much chakra he used up.

"This is just like training, Sasuke, you'd never expend energy without a reason," Sakura continued. "What if we got assigned an A-rank mission later today? What if there was an attack on the village? Your chakra levels wouldn't be up to it." Curiously, she saw his eyebrow twitch when she called him by name without the "kun" again. It was beginning to feel more natural to her now to leave it off, but perhaps he had gotten used to it.

"You're lecturing me now?" Sakura flinched at his accusation. "Kakashi must have really made you angry yesterday." She hesitated, stung that he was bringing it up, but replied honestly.

"He could have gone for any kind of distraction, but he chose to go with pretending to be _you. _Like he thought that would matter most to me. To me, it feels like he views me as the same silly emotional girl I was when I was twelve. Like I've just been twiddling my thumbs while you were gone and learned absolutely nothing over the years." The venom wasn't as present in her words as before, and she fought to keep it that way.

Sasuke regarded her carefully. Any other day he wouldn't have said much to her, but she was clearly upset.

"You haven't shown much strength in taijutsu training. Yes, you have good chakra control, but your sparring tells me that if you ran a solo A-rank you'd get killed the first mission we send you on."

Ouch! Blunt honesty, that was Sasuke. She entertained the idea of retaliating, but in his own way, he was trying to help. _I guess I'll go with it. _

"Sasuke, mostly everything we do in training is taijutsu. When was the last time Kakashi ever went into genjutsu techniques?"

"Genjutsu? Because if your enemy is powerful, he can break it, or work around it. Plus Naruto couldn't learn them if he spent weeks. It's not that useful."

Sakura started. "Not that useful? Forgive me, but don't you have eyes that can trap someone in an endless hell while they just watch?"

Sasuke sighed. "That's a bloodline limit. It's different. Normal genjutsu doesn't work like that."

Oh, he was just asking for it. Sakura was willing to bet it had been years since he'd been caught in a good genjutsu. He clearly underestimated their ability to incapacitate. Before she could reason her way out of it, her hands were already moving into a series of hand signs.

-o-

Sasuke's face took on a look of acute surprise as his world was engulfed in white light. When his eyes adjusted, he was standing alone in the middle of a flowering meadow. The occasional puffy white cloud drifted overhead in an azure sky, and he heard birds chirping in the distance. Amazingly, he didn't recognize any of the birds; they must have come from outside the Fire Country. This genjutsu was intricate if she could manage that. He could feel the heat of the sun on his skin, and the breeze as it rippled past the hairs on his arms. If he breathed in, he could smell the fresh, clean scent of daisies. She had created a paradise for him, even though he knew he was still technically just in a damp, dark cave.

"Total sensory override," said a voice. But before he could turn around, he felt her presence right behind him. "You can't see, hear or smell anything from the real world."

Sasuke fought to keep himself still as her fingers reached over his shoulder and brushed the skin of his neck. "While you've just stood here, I could have easily slit your throat by now."

He'd be lying if he didn't admit that his pulse quickened just then.

He swallowed, and her hand disappeared. Instead Sakura leaned in close and whispered into his ear.

"And I have many others. While you were gone with Orochimaru, I took on B-class missions by myself just to get out of the village. My so-called "useless" genjutsu was the reason I've survived many situations that ended up being out of my depth."

She breathed, and he could feel it. "You want to know how many lives I've taken with my genjutsu?"

"Sakura, that's enough," he stated, moving away from her. The instant he took two steps, she dropped it, and they were again surrounded in darkness.

"You didn't even try to dispel it."

"You wouldn't have done anything."

"Just because Kakashi wants to use taijutsu only in sparring doesn't mean I wouldn't pull it out when given the chance."

"Please, you wouldn't have used it against me."

"Ha. Well, not to kill you, of course. But why would I hesitate? You know I'd have broken both your legs if it meant getting you back from Orochimaru."

There was a beat of silence as she read the expression on his face: unimpressed. To him, she may as well have been a six-year-old swinging her arms, claiming that she was going to beat up "evil guys."

She raked her fingers through her hair. "Is this still about your belief in my childhood crush? This is silly. I thought we were past that. Is this why you can't take me seriously? Because you think I put my feelings for you before being a ninja?"

"Don't you?"

Sakura, apparently, had reached the end of her rope. "Why do you care about it, Sasuke? Why did you ask me days ago whether I still love you or not?"

"I only want to know whether you've finally given up being a fan girl, Sakura," Sasuke told her. "I consider you one of my closest friends, but the only thing keeping me from maintaining that is your constant obsession."

Sakura bit her lip. His admission wounded her; it wasn't every day that the Uchiha let you know he cared about you, even if it was only platonic. She still wasn't done being angry at him yet, though, close friend or not. She clenched her fists, choosing her words carefully before opening her mouth.

"I'm not sure you've noticed how I gave up my obsession with you when you left us, Sasuke. If you had even bothered to look at me twice since the day you returned, you would have seen that. I'm _done_ with you."

Sasuke paused only long enough to let her last sentence echo off the cave walls.

"So that's it. You're done with me. That's the truth." His statement seemed more like a question. As much as Sakura had tried to avoid it, Sasuke had caught her.

"Yeah. I'm done with you. I'd apologize, but you don't seem to care." She lowered her gaze to the floor. When she looked up, he was standing right in front of her, personal space ignored.

"You're done. No more feelings for me."

She gulped. "That's right."

"So if I kissed you right now, you would shove me away."

Sakura involuntarily took a step back. "Wh-what are you saying! Are you crazy?"

"Just answer me. Would you?" Sasuke repeated, reclaiming the space she had created between them. Sakura concentrated hard on not letting his breath on her face distract her. She held her chin up in what she thought was a confident manner. This was a mistake; he was just barely taller than her, so her gesture only brought their faces closer. She refused to be the one to back down, but he wasn't giving in either. Here they stood, locked in a staring contest, and Sakura couldn't for the life of her figure out Sasuke's motive.

"Why are you testing me like this? Haven't you had enough of trying to make me feel small?" she demanded to know. "What the hell is it going to take for you to take me _seriously_?"

At her raised voice, droves of bats woke and swooped down from across the tunnel, flying just above her hair and filling the area. Sakura forced her mouth to close mid-yelp, embarrassed that they had taken her by surprise. Yanking herself around, she stood back-to-back with Sasuke, and prepared her technique while he did the same.

"Katon!" they both yelled. "Goukakyuu no jutsu!" Two equal bursts of fire shot out from their mouths, and screeches of dying bats filled the air. Blistering heat raged around them until the fire gradually tapered off, and the glow dimmed again. Relaxing their stances, Sakura and Sasuke stopped the techniques and stared at each other.

"You learned my technique?" Sasuke asked, his face unreadable. Sakura couldn't tell if he was impressed or irritated that his technique was no longer unique to him alone.

"While you were gone, I learned several techniques of every element," she explained. "I just didn't feel the need to parade them around."

He turned away. "Fine. Well, at least you do it well." He started forward, and continued down the cave without looking back, leaving her standing there. She gaped after him. In his indirect, jerky way, he had just complimented her. A smile lifted the corners of her lips and she quickly chased it away.

"So now you see, right? That I'm more capable than you give me credit for?" Sakura straightened up in pride, so glad that she had finally been given a chance to show what she could do.

She heard Sasuke blow out a breath in front of her, and stop walking. "You're still weak, Sakura. In this team, those who can't do solid taijutsu at close range are useless. And with your lack of physical strength, we'd always be protecting you."

With that, he picked up his stride again.

_You're still weak._

Any trace of happiness she might have felt earlier was certainly sucked out of her now. She just demonstrated an A-rank genjutsu for him, one that even Shizune couldn't break out of, showing that her skill was almost on par with Tsunade's. And because Sasuke couldn't open up his damn eyes for one _second_ and see her as more than a stupid fan girl, he was blind to all of it. He still saw her as the broken link in the team.

Controlling emotions be damned. Sakura felt a white-hot rage course through her at his complete dismissal. How dare he disregard her when she had worked so hard? She worked tirelessly at the hospital most days of the week, and yet healing meant nothing to him. Genjutsu apparently wasn't impressive. What was it with _men_ and thinking that offense is the only thing that matters?

Sasuke wasn't worth her time. She'd poured all of her time and energy as kids fawning over some _ass_ who couldn't see past himself long enough to care about others. And now, even though he did care to a point, he had the nerve to insult her to her face!

She had to hit something. Now.

"You…" she mumbled, her fists clenched. Sasuke heard her from far ahead in the cave, and turned slightly, wondering why she was lagging.

"Sasuke, you complete _idiot_!" She aimed for a boulder lodged into the wall next to her, and channeled her chakra into her arms. Ohhh, that felt good, releasing her chakra like that. It had been too long.

Using all her force without thinking, she slammed her fist into the solid rock. It broke so easily under her hand, exploding in a shower of jagged pebbles. Her fist maintained its course, sinking further into the stone.

The thing was, the boulder was lodged too far into the wall, so far as to be part of it. The force of her blow shook the entire cavern, and Sakura noticed too late that cracks were racing up the wall and over the ceiling.

_Oh no._

Sakura barely had time to yank her fist back before breaking into a sprint for the cave entrance. A split second later, the cave began to collapse.

Sasuke's eyes widened for a moment before he reacted, hurtling out of the cave after her. He was almost out before a massive falling rock caught him on the arm, and he gritted his teeth before any sound could escape. It could wait until they got out of there. Sakura saw his body jerk where it had struck him, and pulled him forward by his good hand. Light was up ahead, and they were so close.

They stumbled and fell to their knees as they hit soft grass, and the ground rumbled around them. With an enormous sputter of dirt and dust, the cavern turned to rubble and the two were showered with brown specks.

Coughing and sputtering, Sakura was in full-on panic mode. Tojira was going to kill them. All she wanted was a couple bats exterminated, and here Sakura had destroyed half the entire cave. She was so dead.

A minute later, Naruto and Kakashi's heads poked out from the smoke as they leaped out of the second tunnel.

"Whoa, what the hell happened? We heard this huge rumbling sound…" Naruto came closer and saw Sasuke's arm. "Ha, what happened to you? Giant mother bat attack you?"

"Shut up, dobe. The tunnel collapsed," Sasuke said with a small grunt of pain.

"But what made…" started Kakashi. He glanced over at Sakura, who was looking ridiculously guilty.

"Sakura! We've talked about this." Sakura, shamefaced, studied the treetops very hard in an effort not to meet his eyes.

Sasuke glanced up. "Wait, you knew she could do this?" he turned his stare to Naruto. "You both knew?"

Naruto shuffled his feet. "Well, yeah. Kind of why I don't provoke her so much. If Kakashi let her use her chakra in her punches we'd all be pushing daisies by now."

Kakashi, still holding a disapproving frown, went over to inspect the cave. "She used it on the training grounds when she was fifteen. I was hiding underground and she broke the place apart to find me." He rubbed the back of his head with his gloved hand. "We don't do that anymore. Do you know how long that took to clean up? Weeks." After a sad sigh upon finding that the right tunnel was finished, he took a second look at Sasuke. "That arm looks broken."

"I'll go to the hospital," Sasuke grumbled.

It was then that Sakura snapped out of her guilt trip. "Now why would you do that?" she asked, seating herself next to Sasuke and gently taking his arm in her hands. He ripped it away from her, refusing to bite his lip at the pain that shot through his arm.

"It's fine," he said sharply.

"Don't be a baby, Sasuke," came Sakura's biting reply. She grabbed his shoulder and wrist with chakra, tightening her grip so that he was immobile. "I've healed far worse than this. Now, _stay effing still_."

She was far too similar to Tsunade for his liking. That made perfect sense, actually, that she would start to emulate her teacher. She had always been bossy, but Tsunade's outright way of manhandling people had evidently stuck a little too well. Sasuke stayed silent, refusing to let a childish 'hmph' escape his lips.

After a slight adjustment to make sure the bones were aligned, Sakura molded her chakra before flooding his arm with green light. Within an instant the pain had disappeared, and she worked steadily, pushing more into the affected area as needed. He felt a twinge of uneasiness, putting his good arm into the hands of a novice medic, but didn't want to bump her in case she severed a nerve or something.

Then, far sooner than he expected, she released him. Holding up his arm, he raised it past shoulder height and bent his elbow. Good as new.

"That only took you two minutes," he said with some awe. He had been in the hospital for serious injuries before, but the medics there had not been nearly as precise or quick then. He had several scars from the more terrifying injuries over the years, but the only evidence that the rock had struck him at all was a faint pink line, and even that was already starting to fade.

"Of course it did. I'm not second in command at the hospital for nothing." Sakura stood up and brushed the dirt off of her shorts.

Wait. _Second in command?_

When the hell did that happen?

"That was amazing, Sakura-chan!" Naruto said excitedly. "We need to go on more missions together!"

"I'm very surprised you haven't had a medic on your missions up until now anyway," she replied. "Usually the Hokage makes sure of that."

"Well, hehe, we kind of never ask for one. I mean, you're always kind of busy doing hospital stuff, and we don't really want anyone else on the team, so…"

Sakura smiled slightly at that. "Hospital stuff? What exactly is it that you think I do there? A broken arm is nothing."

"Well, uh, we always just kind of thought you were Tsunade's assistant? I mean, her other assistant?" Naruto said sheepishly.

"Her assistant? Hang on…you're serious. you guys thought I did paperwork?" Sakura asked dangerously.  
"Not just that!" Naruto was quick to backtrack. "I mean, we thought you did some nurse stuff too! But you're really second in command? That's awesome, Sakura-chan!"

And just when it looked like his female teammate's anger had simmered down. Sasuke leaned away slightly at the dark look on her face.

"You really have no idea, do you?" The pull of her eyebrows was a sure sign that they needed to back down, and _now. _"I can't believe it. All of you!"

Now it was their turn to look guilty. Not a single one of them could meet her eyes.

"I was Tsunade's apprentice. That apprenticeship ended over a year ago. No nurse works the hours that I do; they would have been able to go on missions with you. How did you not know? Naruto at least has an excuse because he never needs healing, so he's never at the hospital, but you two?"

"I knew," Kakashi said defensively. "The ANBU talk about you when you save one of their more bloody men." He shrugged apologetically. "I figured you just didn't like to brag."

She stared at him and took in the compliment about the ANBU. Okay, Kakashi got a pass. Her other two teammates were looking at her slightly slack-jawed, and that was all she needed for today. A little validation.

A high-pitched female voice caught them all off guard. "Oh my god, you've collapsed the tunnel!"

Tojira Kumina stomped over to the group, her extravagant dress bouncing at the hem and straining against her plump figure. Out of breath, she came to a stop in front of them all, taking out an embroidered handkerchief and wiping her face. Oh, how were they going to explain this to her?

Kakashi raised his hands. "I'm very sorry, Tojira-san, there was an accident in the tunnel—"

"Thank you!"

"And…wait, you're happy?"

"I can't tell you how much easier this is going to make my gardening. All of those nasty creatures hiding out in all of their nooks and crannies. And look, you've killed the lot of them. I wouldn't have thought to cut them off at the source."

Glancing at each other, the team took in this new information.

"Oh, well, then, you're very welcome, Tojira-san."

"Can you take out the other tunnel too, please?"

"Erm, um. Well. Sakura?" Kakashi turned toward her, but she was already striding toward the cave.

Sasuke watched her with a newfound respect as she paused five feet beyond the cave entrance.

He could swear she looked right into his eyes when she released that second punch into the wall. A look that said, _I'm imagining this is your head._

-o-

-o-

_Noir18: You can punch through walls? What kind of huge arm muscles do you____**have**____over there?_

Well, there was certainly no doubt about it now. He didn't know how he didn't realize it before. The only female known to have insane strength in the village was Tsunade. And who was her apprentice?

Sakura.

He was a blind idiot.

The only question now was what to do about it. He'd reasoned before that if it turned out to be her, he'd simply close out his account. However, that display of strength today, both on a physical and emotional level, had rattled him. Sakura was clearly not the girl he had assumed she was. In his defense, it was all too easy to imagine that a person couldn't have changed _that _much.

Also, pink hair. Goddamn _pink hair._ Who was ever going to take pink hair seriously? How was that even a genetically natural color?

Sasuke wasn't an unreasonable man. Well, he was, but even he couldn't ignore logic when it was laid out right in front of him. Somewhere along the line, Sakura had grown and changed right under his nose into this confident, capable, _strong _woman. It was so easy just to judge her in one way and not notice anything different.

Perhaps he did it on purpose in a subconscious sort of way; he didn't like thinking that things had changed too much in his absence. He had messed things up enough already. Some things were just supposed to stay the same. And now even _Sakura_, the one constant thing in his life, had gone and turned into some other person.

Frowning, he sat at his computer, rescanning all of his old chats once more. Now that Cherrylover2 was _Sakura, _the conversations seemed so strange. This girl had a sharp wit and didn't let him get away with anything. She treated him like a normal person and not as a crush or as the boy in the village whose entire clan was murdered. She didn't look at him with sympathy or with big doe eyes. To her, he was simply a boy on the other side of a wireless connection.

In a way, finding out Cherrylover2's identity to be Sakura may have been a good thing. How would anyone else react if they found out they were talking to the dark and reclusive Uchiha Sasuke? The conversations would certainly never be the same again.

Then again, if Sakura found out…he didn't even want to think about it. There were too many ways that confrontation could go. If the murderous look she had given him at the end of their mission was anything to go by, these instant message conversations would die a very quick death.

He found that he could not quite give them up. Even if it was Sakura. These were his break from reality, and he didn't like the idea of going on with his life without them.

Just as long as she never found out.


	6. All Things End

Instant Message

Chapter 6 (new)

Sasuke sent a message to Sakura that night anyway. After all, she wasn't furious with _Noir18._

**Noir18: Hey.**

**Noir18: How are things?**

Little did he know, Sakura was fighting to pretend to be oblivious as well. After all, she was furious with _Sasuke_, not Noir18. She would need to keep her scathing comments to herself. Angry or not, she would never reveal herself out of spite. She had gone too far in this.

**Cherrylover2: Just fine. Drinking tea. You?**

**Noir18: Fine. You always drink tea.**

**Cherrylover2: Yeah, I don't really care for the taste of coffee. Tea suits me much better. Just one lump of sugar with a touch of cream and I'm all set.**

**Noir18: You and I will never get along then. I only drink black coffee.**

**Cherrylover2: Well now, that is just unforgivable.**

**Noir18: I know. I'll just sign off now.**

**Cherrylover2: Sigh. I **_**suppose**_** you can stay. *eye roll***

**Noir18: You're so gracious.**

**Cherrylover2: I try.**

**Noir18: So really, how was your day? You're a bit more sarcastic than usual.**

**Cherrylover2: Sometimes I think you're starting to know me a bit too well.**

Sakura bit her lip and drew her knees up to her chest in her chair. She should just make up something, really. But she found that she just couldn't lie to him.

**Cherrylover2: I actually kind of lost it today during training. **

**Noir18: Lost it? Who'd you kill?**

**Cherrylover2: Haha, nothing like that. It was just…it was like this lid blew off of all this anger that I had, and I really could have handled it better. I'm usually never such an angry person. **

She felt rather safe with her response. Not too specific. Besides, even with the wake-up call Sasuke received today about what kind of person she was, he'd never guess in a million years that it was her. She spoke with him over the internet in a way she never would in person.

**Noir18: It happens to the best of us. **

**Cherrylover2: I guess. I should probably apologize for looking like a lunatic when I see them all in a couple days.**

**Noir18: Don't apologize. They probably deserved it.**

Sakura laughed. _If only he knew. _Still, she wasn't going to press the issue.

**Cherrylover2: Haha, maybe. But I should really just let it go. Maybe I'll take up yoga or something. Find inner peace.**

**Noir18: We're ninja. Ninja don't **_**have**_** inner peace.**

**Cherrylover2: Good point. Guess I'll just have to be a raging crazy person all the time then.**

**Noir18: Just as long as you don't punch a hole through anyone.**

Sakura read that sentence and choked on her tea as she realized something. She had freaking _told _him it was her. She had told Noir18 that she could punch through walls. How many people did she know who could do that? He may have not known at the time that Sakura could do that, but after today he certainly knew now. She had basically announced it to him when she collapsed that cave.

But wait. He must have figured it out. If he did, then why was he still talking to her? And more, why was he acting like he didn't _know_?

Sakura frowned and swiveled her chair away from her computer for a moment, staring at the carpet.

He couldn't be this oblivious. He knew. There was no doubt about that. And he was trying to make her believe that he didn't know her identity.

Did these conversations come to mean something more to him than just friendly chatter? Was the person he had been messaging all this time becoming important to him? Sakura knew that as a teammate she was important to him in a strictly protective sense, but these instant messages were different. They were playful and sarcastic and sometimes even flirty. If he didn't want to give them up, even though he knew it was her…

Well, at the very least it meant that she had his respect. He was treating her like he always had in this chat room: like an equal. He gave as much as he took and never criticized her when she opened up to him. It had become a precious thing to her.

So the real question was: how was she going to proceed?

She looked back at the conversation and then noticed what he had just said to her. _They probably deserved it. _Said while knowing it was her.

Entirely against her will, the corner of her mouth lifted up.

She could have kept the game going just a while longer, pretending that she didn't know who he was, but she wasn't sure she had the energy.

**Cherrylover2: I've realized something that I told you.**

**Noir18: What's that?**

**Cherrylover2: I admitted to you that I can punch through walls. How many women in this village can do that?**

**Noir18: Only two, as far as I know. And I hope to Kami-sama you're not Tsunade.**

Sasuke was just going to _lose it _if after all the time it turned out he was talking to the Hokage. But then rationality reasserted itself. She had talked of teams and missions and countless other things that would have been impossible for a Hokage. Thank Kami-sama.

**Cherrylover2: hahaha, oh that would have been hilarious.**

**Noir18: Yeah, for you. *grumble***

**Cherrylover2: Somehow a text grumble is just not as effective as a real one. **

**Noir18: Whatever.**

**Cherrylover2: So…**

**Noir18: So.**

The pause went on for three minutes. Sakura chewed her lip again. For once, she was completely at a loss for what to say. This was the part where he admitted his identity. Yet…it couldn't possibly be that easy.

**Noir18: So, Completely Unknown Person.**

**Noir18: I have a confession to make.**

**Cherrylover2: Do you now?**

Where in the world was he going with this?

**Noir18: My day was a bit strange as well.**

**Noir18: Almost kissed a girl in my team today.**

Sakura's heart stopped.

**Cherrylover2: Really now?**

**Noir18: Yes****.**

**Cherrylover2: And how'd that happen?**

**Noir18: She was getting all angry and demanding and I wanted her to shut up.**

**Cherrylover2: What the hell?**

**Noir18: Well. She may have been saying some things about some old feelings and how she didn't have them anymore. **

**Cherrylover2: And that made you want to kiss her?**

This whole 'speaking in third person' thing was unnerving. He was as good as telling her it was him, but he wasn't coming out and just _saying _it.

He was clearly doing this on purpose, though the unknown 'why' behind it was confusing the hell out of her. "Completely Unknown Person" just _had_ to be sarcastic.

Maybe not outright declaring it was the last bit of distance he felt he had.

**Noir18: I didn't want to hear what she was saying.**

**Cherrylover2: …why?**

**Noir18: Just**

**Noir18: It**

**Noir18: Damn.**

**Noir18: Her saying that meant that things had changed. **

**Noir18: Not just with that one thing, but with everything.**

**Cherrylover2: I don't really understand.**

**Noir18: Fuck. Okay. **

Her eyebrows rose at his cursing. No matter how dark and brooding Sasuke was, he didn't swear freely. This must really matter to him.

**Noir18: I didn't want her to change. Well, I did. I didn't want her to be so useless. It makes me feel cruel to say it, but she was. **

**Noir18: But that was a constant thing in life. Even when everything else changed, she never did. It was comforting, I suppose****.**** That's twisted though.**

**Noir18: And then she had to go and change too. And all of these changes are my fault.**

Sakura thought long and hard before formulating a response.

**Cherrylover2: How could that have been your fault?**

**Noir18: I caused…everything. I did…something.**

**Noir18: And my friends weren't the same after it all. They had to grow up. They moved on. They became stronger.**

**Noir18: It was easier when some things stayed the same.**

**Cherrylover2: I get it.**

**Cherrylover2: And now that everything's different, you don't know how to deal with it?**

**Noir18: God.**

**Noir18: Just**

Another minute passed.

**Noir18: …Yes.**

Never in her life had Sasuke been this open about anything. He must have felt safer in the assumption that perhaps she still thought she was talking to a stranger. Being separated by an internet connection did curious things.

Why hadn't he used her name yet?

She didn't dare breathe. She could only type, and wait.

**Cherrylover2: So let me get this straight. She changed, that upsets you, so you want to kiss her?**

**Noir18: It was just a test. I had to know.**

**Cherrylover2: And if she had failed this 'test?' Would you have kissed her?**

**Noir18: I don't really know. **

It was too much. She just couldn't do this anymore. No matter what she said now, there was just no going back from this. Whatever happened after she laid her cards on the table, happened. Perhaps she could do this in such a way that sounded a bit less deceitful than it actually was.

**Cherrylover2: You just had to go and get all specific.**

**Noir18: You've figured out who I am.**

**Cherrylover2: How could I not, after all that?**

**Noir18: I was halfway hoping I was acting different enough to stay anonymous.**

**Cherrylover2: Well, you had that part right. I don't think you've spoken that much at one time in your life.**

**Noir18: What the hell, woman? **

**Noir18: **_**That's**_** what you say after all this?**

Yeah, maybe now wasn't the time for a joking comment.

**Cherrylover2: Sorry. I'm just kind of at a loss for what to say here.**

**Cherrylover2: Well…there's really only one thing to do.**

**Noir18: Oh? What?**

**Cherrylover2: You said that you didn't know if you would have kissed this girl.**

**Cherrylover2: The only thing to do now is to see her again. See if it happens.**

Sasuke didn't respond for a good ten minutes. Towards the end, Sakura was beginning to think that she had overstepped a forbidden boundary. She had crossed a line that had never have been crossed by anyone. Did she regret it? He had said himself that he was conflicted about kissing her. Was that ruined now? Sasuke was very new to anything like this. She was sure that just one word in the wrong direction could undo any progress that might have been made.

But just as she was about to resign herself to signing off, a notification popped up on her screen.

**Noir18: My house. **

**Noir18: Ten minutes.**

She would have laughed in relief if the whole thing weren't so damn bizarre.

**Cherrylover2: My tea's gone cold. You'll have to make me more.**

Somehow she knew he was smirking from across the connection as he typed his response.

**Noir18: One lump of sugar. Just a touch of cream.**

_Noir18 signed off at 9:54 PM. _

_Cherrylover2 signed off at 9:54 PM._


	7. Won't

Instant Message

Chapter Seven

AN: I really could have ended it there, and it would have looked tied up with a neat little bow. But I saw the reviews. Your fantastic, wonderful reviews. And I got greedy. Plus I feel as though the issues between these two won't simply dry up overnight. She's got abandonment issues and he's never experienced romance of any kind in his life. It's about to get real up in here. ;)

Sakura shut the door to her bedroom behind her, having just returned from the Uchiha district, a warm smile gracing her features.

Yes, he had definitely kissed her.

And yes, it was about as wonderful as she had always imagined it being. Some long-buried part of her, a part that was still about twelve years old, was giving her a high-five.

Sure, they hadn't spoken about anything particularly groundbreaking afterward, and Sakura had had to leave to make it home in time for her parents' dinner. But there was time for all of that. Right now she just wanted to bask in this feeling.

Sasuke had _kissed_ her.

Oh, yeah, and she had kind of forgotten she was supposed to be livid with him. But in the grand scheme of things, she could overlook that.

Sakura had a pleasant conversation with her parents over dinner. She didn't mention Sasuke; somehow she didn't want to spoil it by saying it out loud. Saying it out loud made it official, and it still just felt too _weird_ to be real.

Humming as she cleared the dishes off of the table, she wished her parents a good night and then floated up the stairs to her room. She went through her nighttime routine, washing her face and slipping on a soft cotton tank top and shorts.

Her computer's soft glow in the corner of her room reminded her that she still needed to shut it down, and she wandered over to do just that while brushing her teeth. Holding her toothbrush steady in her mouth, she reached for the mouse and moved it to the start screen, just before noticing that a small pop-up window was blinking.

**Noir18: You left your jacket shirt thing here.**

**Cherrylover2: My cardigan? Oh. Oops.**

**Cherrylover2: I can come by tomorrow after my hospital shift and get it.**

Quickly she hurried to the bathroom and got rid of the lingering mint toothpaste in her mouth. When she came back, he had already responded.

**Noir18: I'll leave it by your door at your house tomorrow morning****.**

**Cherrylover2: And risk getting it dirty? I don't need it back right away. If you're busy tomorrow, I can get it the day after.**

**Noir18: Don't worry about it. I'll just put it in a bag or something and leave it at your place.**

A small frown tugged at Sakura's eyebrows, and her happy little bubble froze for a moment. Something was out of place here.

**Cherrylover2: Sasuke…is there a reason you don't want to meet me face to face to give it to me?**

She knew for sure that something was up when he let three minutes go by before responding. A small, familiar trickle of dread made its way down her spine.

…Of course.

Of course it wasn't that easy. It was _Sasuke. _Emotionally stunted, maddening Sasuke. It was so easy to just imagine that this was the sunset ending.

Ugh. She didn't know how she could have expected that.

**Noir18: Look.**

_Oh, here we go._

**Noir18: Sakura. **

**Noir18: It was a kiss. It wasn't…**

He seemed to falter mid-sentence, and she just knew. Sakura bit her lip, took a long breath, and made a decision. Inhale, exhale. Strengthen resolve. She was better than this.

She was _not_ going to get rejected again.

**Cherrylover2: No, Sasuke. I know.**

Though it was killing her, she had her pride. She had already thrown it away for him once. She had learned.

**Cherrylover2: It's obvious that neither of us thought this through.**

**Cherrylover2: It was fun getting to this part, but we each have our own things to accomplish, and neither of us are ready for this.**

**Noir18: Well…**

**Noir18: Yes. **

She could tell that she had surprised him, and that made her feel just a tiny bit better. Even if this conversation felt like sand shifting through an hourglass, settling its heavy weight on her chest and crushing her under her wasted time, she had preemptively avoided the words she could not bear to hear.

**Cherrylover2: I haven't been your friend and teammate all these years for nothing. I know that you aren't going to magically change into someone who wants a relationship.**

**Cherrylover2: I have to ask though…**

**Cherrylover2: What was going through your mind when you asked me over?**

Another minute. Her heart felt a painful twinge, but she waited patiently.

**Noir18: I don't know. **

**Noir18: All of those messages were clearly leading up to something. By then it just…**

**Cherrylover2: Yeah. **

**Noir18: It's just more than I can give.**

**Cherrylover2: I know that.**

**Noir18: …all right then.**

No, it was most certainly not all right. But she'd be damned if she was going to show him that.

**Cherrylover2: I'll see you at training on Monday.**

_Cherrylover2 signed off at 9:56PM._

-o-

Sasuke ran his fingers through his hair and shut his eyes tightly. He was so far out of his depth here. How was he going to handle this when he saw her again?

Why the hell had he invited her over?

He couldn't resist rereading what they had written, just in case he had missed something. Sakura was just the type of girl to go all woman-y and take all of his words the wrong way—or so he had anticipated when he had started this train wreck of a conversation. This was why he was never in a relationship. Women were vengeful creatures who got in the way of goals and ambition and tangled themselves up in good shinobis' lives. It made them weak.

However, she had taken his fumbling words with grace, and—dare he say it—dignity. It was more than he expected by far. More than he deserved.

He had expected crying. Perhaps some harsh words. Maybe even some begging, like she did when they were thirteen and he left her on that bench. Maybe offers to show him what a normal relationship could be like. It would never have worked. As much as he cared for his teammates, he couldn't recall the last time he had gone out of his way for someone else. Well, off the battlefield anyway. She would have been miserable.

All things considered, he felt she had dodged a kunai there. She would be much better off just being his teammate, and he could live his uncomplicated, straightforward life.

His phone rang just then, and he made no move to answer it. He was not in the mood to deal with whoever was on the other end of that line. What he wanted right now was to sleep. Sleep, and also bang his head against a wall. Both sounded equally appealing.

The phone eventually quieted, and a long exhale passed through his lips. He was still sitting at his computer. He hadn't even closed out the chat window. Very slowly, he dragged the mouse over to the red 'X,' and clicked it. It vanished with a sense of finality.

There. It was done.

_Knock, knock._

_ Knock knock knock._

If that turned out to be Sakura at the door he would flee through the back of his house.

"Teme! You didn't answer your damn phone!"

Ah. Naruto.

Sasuke hauled himself up on his feet and disabled the traps surrounding his front door before twisting it open.

"Dobe, you called thirty seconds ago—"

"Yeah, well, if you weren't going to pick up the phone it wouldn't do any good to call again," Naruto said with a grin while throwing an arm around Sasuke's neck by way of greeting. "Come on, we're going out."

Sasuke felt himself being steered towards his front porch before he had even registered what was happening. Stopping in his tracks, he disentangled himself from Naruto's grasp and glared at his best friend.

"Dobe. I'm not going. I didn't answer my phone. Take the hint."

Naruto only grinned in that completely unfazed way of his that made Sasuke want to growl. And punch him. Preferably punch him.

"How long has it been since I've dragged you to Ichiraku's? I'll even order us a bottle of sake." The golden-haired man of eighteen rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. "After all, I do kinda owe you for paying the last bill."

"The one you ran out on, you mean," Sasuke muttered with a scowl.

"Yeah, that one."

"I've told you. I'm not doing it. Go force Hinata to eat more of that growth-stunting crap."

"Ouch, teme. Insulting the salt-covered miracle that is ramen again. You're harsher than normal today." Naruto gave him a curious look, and ducked his head back through the doorway into Sasuke's house as though he might find the source of the problem in there. "What's up?"

He must be in a bad place if even the dobe was noticing something wrong. Glaring, he opened his mouth to tell the moron to shut up and mind his own business, but the fox boy had already pushed past him and made his way to the couch. Naruto collapsed lengthwise onto the dark leather, his feet dangling over the armrest and closing his eyes.

"Naruto. Boundaries."

"Tell me what's going on," came the immediate reply.

"I will kill you."

"Haven't managed so far." Naruto opened one eye to peek at him. "Damn, it must be bad if you haven't started hitting me yet. Just spit it out already."

Sasuke could have left the house himself and destroyed a few things in the training grounds. He could have gone to bed and left his friend in the living room. But right now…loathe as he was to admit it, but Naruto actually had more experience in the romance department. Against all better judgment, maybe it was better to ask for some advice.

"I kissed Sakura."

Naruto was on his feet in an instant. "Tell me you didn't just say that."

"I did."

For all his godlike reflexes, Sasuke was unprepared for the open-handed blow that landed sharply on the back of his head.

WHACK.

"Dobe, give me a reason not to kill you," he threatened as he regained his composure.

"Are you out of your goddamn mind, teme?" Naruto demanded. "Why the hell did you go and do that? You know what? I don't even care. Just go fix it."

Sasuke tugged at his shirt to straighten it. "It's a bit more complicated than that. And it _is_ fixed. Or at least, it's over. She's fine."

Naruto gave him a rather incredulous look. "You MUST be stupid."

"A bit ironic, coming from you." Sasuke's words lacked the bite they held earlier. His defensiveness was settling in. He could use a friend right now, and _this _was what he got?

Naruto exhaled through his teeth. "You're an idiot if you think Sakura-chan is just going to be fine with you doing something like that. She might be grown up and a big shot medic and all, but it's not like she just stopped having feelings. Wait." He paused for a second, and a flicker of doubt passed over his face. "You did say that you weren't going to date her, right? Are you guys together now? Should I be happy for you or something?"

"Of course I said I wouldn't date her," Sasuke said automatically.

WHACK.

That was it. Sasuke lunged at him, and for about ten seconds his living room became a grappling ring with a tangle of fists and legs. Both refused to be pinned to the floor, but neither wanted to break anything in the house, so what followed was an awkward display of restraint. Each held the upper hand for mere seconds before the tides turned. A grab at a collar. A fistful of hair. A shoulder to the jaw.

"Teme, that was my head!"

"Dobe, get off of my leg."

"You need to quit choking me first!"

Both breathing heavily, they eventually leaned against opposite walls in the living room, facing each other and glaring.

"NOT Sakura-chan," Naruto hissed. "She's our friend, Sasuke. You could have messed around with anyone else. You don't mess around with friends. Damn it, Sasuke!" he shouted. "She was in love with you!"

He was _not _going to make Sasuke feel guilty about this. Not when Sakura had been perfectly okay about what had happened.

"She's not. Not now anyway. She handled it just fine, okay?" Sasuke spat. "I said I couldn't get involved, and she just said, 'See you at training.' She's more fine than you are, apparently."

Naruto just stood and brushed himself off. Sasuke really needed to mop his floors. He was obviously never home long enough to. "You're deluded if you think that was her being 'fine.' I don't know what possessed you to mess with Sakura-chan, but if you don't fix this and our team breaks up, I am going to hunt you down and break _you._"

With that, Naruto stormed from the house, leaving Sasuke to groan and shut his eyes.

This was a fucking mess. He was never dealing with women again.


	8. Standing drenched

AN: It's been forevvver, and I apologize. But hopefully, the chapter will be worth it. Enjoy!

Instant Message

Chapter Seven

_Okay…I'm going to forget him. _

That was the resolve Sakura had come to after hours of thinking without sleep each night, as she laid there on her futon pondering about Sasuke. It had been at least three days that she had avoided him so far, although he wasn't the hardest person to avoid at all. She couldn't make him see things her way. He never would be ready for a real girlfriend. And she was foolish to think that she would have been any different.

Morning came, slow and lazy, much like Sakura's body felt. She yawned and sat up, and realized that she had tangled herself in her bedspread from tossing and turning so much. Well, that was going to end here. No more thoughts of Sasuke. Anything related to him in her mind was now banned.

After a small breakfast, she wandered the streets of Konoha, wondering. _What would I do in a life without Sasuke? _She realized with a start that most everything she did was to become better to him. Now that he was no longer supposed to matter to her, she was at a loss. Every little task she performed, she somehow had Sasuke in mind. She couldn't believe she had let herself become this obsessed. It was absurd.

"Oi, Sakura-san," a deep voice called, and Sakura's heart skipped a beat. _Damn. _She had to stop hoping that every male voice she heard might have been _him_. Going through the marketplace was hell.

"Yes?" she answered automatically before turning to face the speaker. It was Hyuuga Neji, now a man whom she hadn't spoken to in months. They came from separate teams, after all, so the time for conversation was minimal. She had hardly even remembered he existed.

"Hokage-sama needs to see us both immediately," he informed her politely, in that detached voice that reminded her so strongly of the person she was trying to block out that it hurt. Sakura cast her vision to the various people surrounding them; as long as she didn't have to look at him, she would be fine.

"Of course. No problem."

Without either saying another work, they began their walk to Tsunade's office. Neither of them had planned on walking together, but as they were both heading in the same direction…

Sakura chanced a look up at him, and studied his passive-looking face. He was like stone in some ways, hard and cold, but at least he could maintain a conversation with someone close to him. He seemed like the type to be a lot warmer once you really delved deep into his personality. It was almost intriguing. Sakura found herself placing bets in her head as to how long it would take to break down the barriers surrounding him.

"Neji-san," she started, surprising herself. She hadn't meant to speak to him. But now that his attention was on her, she had to say _something. _She opened her mouth, fumbling for words, and then sighed before closing it again. _Not much you can say to someone like him._

"Have you ever wanted to just get away?" Neji suddenly asked. Sakura's eyes widened. It seemed that he had a few things on his mind too. "From anything and everything in your life?"

She laughed bitterly, and he glanced questioningly down at her. "What a question."

He kept his swift pace next to her as he looked away. "So you have."

"Every passing minute."

Her sentence caused him to slow down and survey her face, like she was a new jutsu he hadn't discovered before.

For a few seconds they just stared at each other, wondering. They both had problems, they knew, and yet neither was going to ask about them. As if in gradual acceptance, their features warmed. At least they weren't alone in their trials.

"My father," Neji spoke by way of explanation. "Too many expectations."

"Sasuke," Sakura answered. "Not enough expectations."

This was where Neji stopped walking altogether. "You're still hung up on him?"

Sakura's face darkened, and Neji knew he had said the wrong thing. But rather than be angry about it, Sakura turned slightly red and gazed at the ground beneath her.

"I don't want to be anymore," she said softly. "I've had it with trying to measure up. I'm done with trying to be good enough. Because I finally know that I never will."

Neji sent her a soft smile, and she knew that he could relate. "Giving up on measuring up," he said thoughtfully. "My thoughts exactly."

Silence passed between them, a quiet sort of understanding. Sakura had never really looked at Neji before now, not as a person. Now there was something that she could only describe as curiosity.

"After we meet with Tsunade-sama, do you want to get something to eat?" she offered.

Surprise flitted across his face. "With you?" he asked. She grinned at him.

"Of course with me. Would you want to?"

It was a moment before he said anything. Then, a small smile upturned his lips.

"Sure."

Three months later

"Of course, Neji-kun," Sakura said over the phone as she multitasked, cleaning up her room and opening her curtains. Sunlight streamed onto her face, and she smiled as she cradled the phone between her ear and shoulder. "Meeting you there at seven, then? Sure. Miss you too. Bye."

If one was counting, it had really only taken her about two dates to get him to open up a bit. His defenses really weren't all that strict, and she found herself having hilarious conversations with him for hours on end. Neji really had a sense of humor, even if he hardly ever displayed it.

She and Neji had become the closest of friends, constantly talking over the phone and going to endless meetings at Ichiraku, among fancier restaurants. For a while they had showed romantic interest, but it seemed to have simmered down to the point where they simply shared a bond, a close-knit type that wasn't unlike having a relationship. But Sakura couldn't really say that she wanted to date him. Sure, they had shared a few kisses during a more awkward phase of their friendship, but it seemed that they had come to a mutual understanding that things would stay the way they were. He was like the older brother she always wished she had.

Sakura dusted off her computer, and remembered that she hadn't logged on to _that _chat room in months. She vaguely wondered if he ever thought of her anymore. Did Sasuke even actually think of her before? Purely out of curiosity, she booted up her computer and signed in. She stood up to retrieve the glass of cranberry juice that she had left in her living room.

When she came back, she froze.

**Noir18: Sakura?**

This wasn't fair. Sasuke should never be able to capture her interest this quickly, not when she had finally learned not to depend on him. She had learned how to live a life of her own, with her own goals. He shouldn't be affecting her like this. With just a single word, even.

Sitting down slowly, Sakura debated whether to type back. Well, he had started the conversation. If he had anything to say, then she would talk to him. If not, no harm done. She would get ready for tonight's event, and nothing would change.

**Cherrylover2: Yeah. **

**Cherrylover2: How are you doing, Sasuke?**

**Noir18: …**

**Noir18: I've been better. You?**

**Cherrylover2: Never been better.**

She wasn't really throwing it in his face that she was doing well without him. Not at all. Well, maybe a little bit.

**Noir18: Are you going to the jounin dinner tonight?**

**Cherrylover2: Of course. It's a requirement, isn't it?**

Sasuke winced. He didn't make mistakes like this.

**Cherrylover2: I assume you're going, then?**

**Noir18: Yeah.**

**Cherrylover2: Great. Maybe I'll see you there.**

**Cherrylover2: I have to go get ready. I'll talk to you later, Sasuke.**

No Sasuke-kun. That was a blow to his ego. She was really done with him. Well, he had suspected as much anyway.

**Noir18: Are you done with me?**

Sakura's breath caught in her throat. What did he mean? And why would it matter?

**Cherrylover2: I would think so, after three months.**

**Cherrylover2: Why?**

**Noir18: No reason. **

**Noir18: Just glad that you've finally gotten your own life.**

**Cherrylover2: See, this is why I choose not to talk to you anymore. **

**Cherrylover2: You can be so impossible to deal with. **

**Cherrylover2: And yeah, I've got my own life. Happy?**

**Noir18: No.**

But then, when was Sasuke ever happy?

**Cherrylover2: What in this world could possibly make you happy, Sasuke?**

A few minutes passed, and Sakura had drained the rest of her cranberry juice from the glass. He probably wouldn't even respond. It figured.

**Noir18: To see you at the jounin dinner without Neji.**

_Noir18 signed off at 5:42 PM._

_Sasuke…_Sakura sighed. She would never understand him. How did he even know about Neji? So many questions came to mind when she allowed herself to think of him. It was still a mystery that he even happened to be online at this time. Was it pure coincidence, or had he been waiting for hours, maybe days even, for her to get online?

It didn't matter in the least. Sakura was going, and she was going with Neji. Sasuke could think what he wanted of that. Sasuke would not influence her actions any longer. Screw it.

The jounin dinner was packed, the large restaurant still not enough to give everyone proper space. Instead the main table in the middle was loaded with food, and long benches stretched out along the perimeter of the room against the walls. It was about the most informal dinner they had ever had; yet everyone was dressed as if they were going to a dance rather than a get-together for their rank.

Sakura spotted Neji over the crowd on the bench on the far side of the room, and smiled as she made her way over to him. His answering smile contained his approval for her dress; a slightly shimmery, body-hugging red fabric that hung elegantly down to her knees, accentuating her long legs. When she sat down, Neji moved to whisper in her ear.

"Is this going to be another one of those nights where I have to fend off the guys?" he asked teasingly. Immediately he caught sight of a young man giving Sakura a hopeful stare. Neji smirked and slid his arm easily around her waist.

"Tenten isn't going to like this very much," Sakura whispered back. "She won't care that you two have only been dating for a week."

"She'll understand once she sees your dress."

"Is that so?"

"Are you questioning my judgment?" Neji asked, pretending to sound offended.

Sakura laughed. "Of course. Oh, there she is!" she pointed to the middle of the mass of people, and Neji caught sight of Tenten scooping some mashed potatoes onto her plate at the table.

He grinned. "Guess I'm going to have to go say hi."

"You'd better." They grinned at each other a final time, and Neji disappeared into the crowd.

Sakura watched the people idly for a few moments as they chattered on about unimportant things. She would get food once most of them had found seats. She didn't particularly feel like battle the other hungry jounins for the right to get to the table. It just wasn't worth it. She smiled as a few acquaintances noticed her, and waved.

"Sakura."

Neji had just left…this wasn't his voice. Sakura looked up, and a dark man clad in a black suit stared down at her. A mess of emotions spilled over in her mind, but she forced herself to keep calm. Arranging her face into a pleasant expression, she smiled lightly at him.

"Sasuke."

"You brought Neji."

"Well, it was more like Neji brought me." She studied his expression carefully. As always, there was not one readable emotion there. "Why did you mention him?" _Both times?_

Sasuke flinched. "It doesn't matter."

A slight frown crossed Sakura's face. "It matters. And you know it."

"I'm not having this discussion." Sasuke turned, and stalked off. Sakura gazed sadly after him, wringing her hands. He was still the same. She was foolish to hope for even a second that he could have been any different.

Soon, the lights were dimmed, and the table was moved to the corner of the room to make way for what was now a dance floor. Soft music drifted through speakers overhead, and several couples, including Neji and Tenten, had gathered to the floor to dance. Sakura stood off to the side, sucking the chocolate off of a strawberry dessert without bothering to be too ladylike.

Suddenly Sasuke appeared in front of her, and gripped her hand. Sakura had just enough time to set her plate down on the bench before she was dragged off to the dance floor.

"Hey, Sasuke, what—"

"Just wait," he said gruffly. When they reached the center of the slowly revolving mass of couples, he turned to face her, and his grip loosened on her hand. As though unsure of how to treat her, he very gently lifted her wrist and placed it behind his neck and slid his hands over the sides of her waist.

If Sakura had still been a fangirl, she no doubt would have fainted dead on the spot.

"I want to talk," Sasuke finally said. Sakura's ever-present sarcasm she had mostly gained from Neji reappeared.

"Oh, and this is the best spot to do that?" she asked him. He frowned at her, but couldn't retort. He knew what she had gone through to forget him. She could get away with a little sarcasm.

"Have you forgotten me?" he asked softly, too serious for her to play off his question with a joke. Her frown vanished and she looked away, casting her eyes to the floor.

"You wanted me to, remember?"

"That's not true," he snapped back, and Sakura was forced to meet his stare.

"How is it not true, Sasuke? You didn't want a girlfriend. You strung me along like I was nothing. Years of being your teammate meant nothing to you." Sakura's voice was thankfully gaining strength the more she defended herself, and switching to offense only increased her defiance. "I was there. If you wanted me, you could have had me."

"Could have?" Past tense. He found that he didn't like that at all.

"Could have," she affirmed. "I need to get going. It was nice seeing you again." Without glancing at him, she disentangled herself from his arms, even though his grip tightened on her. Not bothering to look back, Sakura walked away.

The rain coming down outside would ruin her dress, she knew it, but she had already told him she was leaving, didn't she? No sense in hanging around now. Although when she had made up that stupid excuse to get away, she wasn't betting on having to walk home in the rain. Fate truly was against her.

"Dammit," she swore as the downpour seemed to increase, drenching the air around her and her clothing as well. Oh, well. No one would see her anyway. Everyone else was either safe and warm inside their cozy little houses or at the jounin dinner anyway. That should leave some of her pride.

Quickly stepping through the darkened streets, she winced several times as mud soaked into her shoes and splattered onto her legs. Her once nicely done-up hair was hanging in soaked ringlets around her face and clinging to her cheeks. She was a mess. The pretty makeup she had dusted across her skin had been washed away. If anyone saw her, she would not be leaving her house for days.

Fumbling with the key in her purse, Sakura reached her door and struggled to fit it into the lock. Just her luck that the wet key slipped out of her hands and onto the welcome mat. She bent over to retrieve it, gasping as cold rain ran into her eyes.

"Sakura."

For the second time that evening, she froze. Looking up from her awkward position on her doorstep, the key lay forgotten as she gaped at him.

Just as sopping as she was, Sasuke stooped over, his nice suit crinkling with the movement. When he straightened, he held Sakura's house key between his fingers. Wordlessly, he handed it to her, and their fingers brushed. Sakura shivered at the rush that raced through her. Damn her barely-dormant feelings.

He stood silent, and for a while neither spoke a word, the only sound being the plinking of the rain around them. It was almost like a silent conversation; the longer they stared at each other, reading the emotions on each other's faces, the more they understood. The situation had turned so badly so quickly, so quickly that neither of them really knew what was happening. And then the three-month break from each other came, and they had had time to piece together their own conclusions.

It was clear to Sakura that Sasuke now knew what exactly what he had said to her. Whether he had been working toward change she didn't know, but the fact that he was here, with her, dripping wet, had to mean something. It meant _something_, didn't it?

Sasuke was the one to speak first. He opened his mouth, decided against the words, and closed it again. Then, he managed a single, difficult sentence.

"I would appreciate it if we could discuss some things," he said in a low voice. "And…" he trailed off, plainly struggling. "I don't want it to turn into an argument."

"I don't talk very well in person," Sakura admitted. Sasuke sighed.

"Then what would help?"

**Cherrylover2: Glad you got out of the rain all right. **

**Noir18: Yeah. Me too. **


	9. Through with being fragile

AN: No big gap since the last update. Good, right?

Instant Message

Chapter Eight

Still insensitive. He was apparently trying not to be, but it wasn't enough. Sakura had decided that as much as she wanted to simply accept him for who he was, she couldn't. She had needs too, and she was tired of trying selflessly to meet his and not have the effort returned.

**Cherrylover2: So what is it that you could possibly offer me after all of this?**

A half hour of her fingers flying across the keyboard, and they had gotten nowhere. True, it hadn't turned into an argument, but it was still conflict. This was not a time where Sakura would back down, and seeing as how Sasuke _never _backed down, she knew that if they were to resolve anything they would be sitting for a while.

**Noir18: Who said I wanted to offer you anything?**

Sakura smirked. At least that was an easy question.

**Cherrylover2: You did.**

**Noir18: Explain.**

**Cherrylover2: Oh, maybe it was when you showed up at the Jounin dinner and purposefully sought me out. **

**Cherrylover2: Or maybe it was when you got jealous of Neji simply for being with me. **

**Cherrylover2: Or, when you went after me _in the rain _demanding that I talk with you.**

**Cherrylover2: Take your pick.**

Sasuke raked his fingers through his hair and blew out a heavy breath. Why couldn't she just go back to doting on him? It made things so much easier. He didn't have to deal with her stubbornness then, and at least he knew that eventually he would win every time. This was a challenge.

_A challenge…_Sasuke hadn't thought of it like that until just now. A slow smirk spread across his lips. It just might turn fun; it was a game of chase. Not that he wanted her—she was just providing so much resistance that it was hard to pass up the temptation.

**Noir18: All right. Maybe I do.**

Sakura's eyes widened. What the hell?

**Noir18: Say I did want to offer you something.**

**Noir18: Sakura. **

**Noir18: What do you want from _me?_**

She caught on to his game. Her eyes narrowed; he was doing it again. Intentionally toying with her feelings because it entertained him. She had no idea when in his teenage life he had discovered that he enjoyed messing with people's brains, but it was a sadistic quality she supposed he'd always had. The bloodlust he possessed since the death of his parents was just another way of showing how much he enjoyed the torment of others. And now he thought he was going to get away with messing with her.

Right.

**Cherrylover2: You know, there are a lot of things I want from you. **

**Cherrylover2: And it sounds like there are a lot of things you want from me.**

**Cherrylover2: Trouble is, _you can't have me_.**

_Cherrylover2 signed off at 10:59 PM._

Sasuke growled. It was war.

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"Sakura, you're acting odd again. What'd he do?"

Sakura jerked from her trance and stared at Neji. He had caught her spacing out.

"What did who do?" she asked him defensively.

"You know perfectly well whom I'm referring to," he said easily. Sakura turned away from him to hide the guilty frown pulling at her eyebrows.

"He didn't do anything," she assured him. He lifted an eyebrow, unconvinced. "He just acted…like himself, I guess."

Neji chuckled a little. "Which is all it takes."

"Absolutely."

"Don't worry, Sakura," Tenten cut in with a smile. "If I catch him bothering you, I'll make him walk funny for weeks." She grinned as she said this, earning a laugh from Sakura.

Eating out at Ichiraku with Neji and Tenten, just the three of them, proved to be somewhat therapeutic. Sakura no longer felt depressed and weighed down like when she was alone; rather, she felt defiant and ready to take on anything Sasuke could throw at her. Judging from their last conversation, this was clearly not over.

"Besides," Tenten said through a mouthful of shrimp ramen, "he can't ignore all of your good qualities and focus on tormenting you at the same time."

"Oh, believe me, he can." The pork noodles in Sakura's bowl didn't seem as appetizing to her as they had a moment ago. She imagined them crawling around, over and under one another, arranging themselves into a smirking face…

_Stop it. _

"You know, I'm already full," she said as she pushed her bowl away a few inches for emphasis. "You two enjoy. I think I'm gonna go find Naruto and train."

Neji, ever the perceptive one, knew what was on her mind. "Don't get too frustrated," he called after her. "Poor Naruto won't be able to stand the abuse if you take out your aggressions on him." Sakura merely scowled at him before walking out.

Sakura had no intention of going to train. Nothing wrong with a little white lie. No harm in going back to her place and moping for a while, was there?

Of course, fate just had to come and ruin everything.

Or maybe it was just horrible timing.

"Sakura."

_Don't look at him, don't look at him, don't look at him, _Sakura repeated to herself in a kind of insane mantra. Despite her inner warnings, she still found herself raising her eyes to meet the cold Uchiha's. Only, his eyes didn't seem so cold this time.

"What do you want?" she asked crossly as she folded her arms.

"I'm taking you to lunch."

Sakura fought back a smirk and gazed off into the distance as if the subject bored her. "Sorry, but I just finished having lunch with Neji-kun. I was on my way to Tsunade-sama's."

Her eyes held a triumphant gleam at the taken-aback expression Sasuke held. Obviously he did not like the name "Neji-kun." She could have fun with this.

"Maybe some other time. Me, you, and Neji-_kun _can all go together!" she said excitedly. She had to admit she was feeling quite masochistic today. She enjoyed every flinch Sasuke made at the mention of her friend's name.

"Maybe," he admitted, furiously attempting to match her. He stepped closer, just a little, enough so that she was visibly aware that he was invading her personal space.

"But I'd much rather be with you alone," he breathed.

Sakura sneered. "I don't know, Neji-kun's pretty protective of me. I don't think he'd be too happy that I was off gallivanting with the village traitor." Ooh. Sasuke winced. That was hitting below the belt.

"Then how about if you were off enjoying a meal with a redeemed jounin?" he asked her. _Heh, trying to turn it around so he's in a good light?_ Sakura thought. _We'll see._

"I don't think that will be a possibility, _Sasuke. _He doesn't like too many of the people who've hurt me in the past. You saw what happened to Lee-san a couple months back." Indeed, Sakura had decided to give Lee a chance with a small date at a hole-in-the-wall restaurant, and it had fallen flat when Lee had announced to the entire room of couples that he was going to marry her. That took some damage control, and poor Lee had found himself at the receiving end of Neji's Gentle Fist for it the next morning.

As Sakura waited expectantly for his retort, she analyzed his face. He was clearly thinking hard, desperately trying to figure out how he could refute her words. But the truth was, there was nothing he could say. He _was _one of the people who had hurt her in the past. In fact, he was the _worst_ person to have hurt her.

"Well, then," he said slowly. Time to realize when to step back and come up with a new game plan. "I guess I'll see you soon."

But Sakura wasn't ready to quit so fast. "I'll be busy with hospital work and missions more than usual, so I doubt it." Without bothering to say goodbye, she vanished.

Damn that girl.

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Round Two. Like he was giving up that easily.

It was the holidays. December 10, to be exact. No way was he letting this chance slip. And no way would he have done this if it weren't for a challenge. But he had decided long ago that he wasn't about to let this go.

Sakura would be Christmas shopping soon, as Sasuke found out after some digging that Tsunade had given her time off from the hospital to do just that. In between still training with Kakashi and working, Sakura hadn't had a spare moment to herself. What an advantage.

He spotted her leaving her home from the café window he sat by, and watched as she headed to a roadside vendor. He grinned. Time to make his move.

"Hmm," Sakura said out loud as she examined a pretty rhinestone barrette. "How much do you want for this?"

"Nice choice," the male cashier complimented. Sakura suppressed a snort. He was only trying to make a sale. He really shouldn't waste his thoughtless flattering on her. "That goes for…let's say…twelve dollars."

_Twelve dollars? _Sakura thought. _Outrageous. It's amazing what vendors can charge simply because it's the right season. _Graciously, she set the barrette back onto the tablecloth. "Thanks anyway," she said sweetly.

"I'd like to buy this," a rough voice said from behind her. _There's plenty of room around the stall, _Sakura noticed, aggravated. _Does this guy have to stand right behind me?_

A hand reached over the table from behind her, and Sakura whirled around. This was an invasion of personal space!

"Sir, you don't—" she started angrily.

Sasuke stared at the cashier, not giving any indication that he had even seen her, the blue barrette in his palm. Wordlessly he reached for his wallet.

"Good choice," the vendor said.

"Shut up," was the reply.

Sakura held back a smile.

"Well, Sasuke, I never knew you were the feminine type," she teased. "Or maybe it's for a woman? Ino, maybe?"

Sasuke looked away with a frown. "You know very well that Yamanaka's with Shikamaru." He tossed the barrette to her, and Sakura yelped in surprise as she caught it. "Keep it." He turned away from her, ready to leave.

"I see what you're trying to do." Sasuke halted his steps at her accusation. An amused smirk lifted the corner of his mouth, and he glanced at her over his shoulder.

"And?"

"You think you're so sneaky, trying to make me fall for you just because you see it as some personal game," Sakura spat. "I'll tell you right now, it won't work. Trying to play with my feelings like this isn't going to make anyone very happy."

"And what if I was just trying to give you a gift?" he asked.

Sakura snorted. "Pretending innocence isn't exactly one of your strong points, Sasuke."

"I'm insulted. Merry Christmas, Haruno." He disappeared, leaving Sakura to wonder just what he thought he was doing.

"Merry Christmas, you bastard."

Her fingers unconsciously closed over the barrette.

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Round Three.

Arranging the two-person mission was so simple. All it took was a little bribery for Tsunade to pull a few strings, and there it was—the scroll containing the mission details for he and Sakura.

"What is the meaning of this?" Sakura shouted when Tsunade summoned her. Sasuke leaned against the wall in the corner of the room, an evil gleam dancing in his eyes. "Since when am I assigned missions with this _traitor_!"

"Be reasonable," Tsunade commanded sharply. "Uchiha's past affects nothing in this. He is a citizen of Konoha, and this mission requires both a fighter and a healer. You two are the best in both fields. Now go."

"Tsunade-sama, send someone else," Sakura pleaded. "Kairi-san's moving up in the hospital, she's becoming a decent healer—"

"Sakura!" Tsunade barked, and Sakura's voice faltered. "Do not argue with me. I expect the mission to be completed in three days. Leave as soon as humanly possible."

Sakura trudged out of the Hokage's tower with a glum expression and a poorly rolled-up mission scroll.

"You should be grateful it's such a short mission," Sasuke said from behind her as he too exited the tower. Ignoring him, Sakura quickened her pace. "It's just beyond our borders."

"Why did you make her do that?" Sakura demanded to know as she spun to face him. "Isn't this ridiculous _challenge_ going too far?"

Sasuke looked down at her, the humor fading from his face. "You started the challenge. 'You can't have me,' you said. Naturally, you wouldn't expect me to just take that without proving you wrong."

"That's what this is about?" Sakura threw her hands up and glared at him. He was insufferable. "Then fine. I suppose if you suddenly had amnesia and woke up with a complete personality change, I _might_ consider dating you. But oh, wait—you're still an ass. Sorry."

Sasuke didn't react to her words at all. Instead, he lifted his hand until it touched her hair. Smirking, he gently removed the glittering rhinestone barrette and held it for her to see.

"Caught you wearing it."

He just loved catching her off guard.

"I-I was going to buy it anyway. It doesn't matter _who_ bought it."

"You had it on all wrong anyway." Sasuke smoothed her hair behind her ear, and slid the barrette back into her pink strands. When he let go, her hair was held away from the right side of her face, and he could see her eyes that much more clearly.

Sakura's heart was pounding, that much Sasuke knew. It was odd; he was going to such great lengths to do things that a boyfriend might do, when otherwise he never would have. He was not a nice person. If Sakura had been standing there, still very much in love with him, and with a true smile on her face, Sasuke would not have done these things. Why now? Why when she wanted nothing more than to be rid of him? It was all part of the challenge, wasn't it?

He was jerked away from his thoughts by the confused frown making its way across Sakura's face. This time, though, her expression was not so much of loathing as it was of worry.

"Sasuke." Her eyebrows were knitted, but her eyes held sadness. "Please."

"What?" he asked her.

"Don't play with me like this. If you need someone to satisfy your sadistic little needs, there's always a past girlfriend you can use." She gestured with her hands as she spoke, Sasuke noticed. "D-Don't…" she sighed, long and slow. "I thought I at least meant more to you than that."

A stunned silence followed. Sakura gazed at him with saddened eyes, and before Sasuke could think of a response she had walked past him.

"See you at the gates in an hour. We've got a mission to do, don't we?" she said professionally, but her voice was laced with hurt. Sasuke blinked, and she was gone.

Sasuke made no attempt to move, only standing still as the Sakura-less market street buzzed with people around him.

Suddenly this whole game didn't seem as entertaining.

AN: Unpolished, written in haste, and overall a bit messy, but I figured you all wanted to see it. And I know Sasuke sounds OOC, but think—it's been forever since his return, and he's bound to have changed a little bit, at least enough to function properly as a human being :P Review, please!


	10. Syaoran

Instant Message

AN: Updated, after forever and ever. Thank goodness it's summer vacation :) I've missed this site.

**Instant Message **

**Chapter Nine**

This was ridiculous.

Sakura should not have been dominating his thoughts this much. But even now, as she walked unhappily beside him past the gates of Konoha, her final words to him still raced through his mind.

"_I thought I at least meant more to you than that."_

He had nothing to admit. He had played his part in this little game—she had to have been playing along as well. No girl would be that naïve, to blindly trust with her whole heart. She had to have known things wouldn't turn out perfectly. No girl held onto the idea of a fantasy romance past the age of twelve.

But apparently she did.

Sasuke stole a sideways glance at her and found her eyes staring resolutely ahead, determined not to show any form of weakness at all. Sasuke couldn't tell whether she was angry, or saddened, or nervous about the thought of being around him for three solid days.

"Don't bother talking to me, Sasuke," she suddenly said, breaking the tense silence between them. "I'm not going to get caught up in any new game you may or may not have planned for this trip."

Well. Sasuke guessed she was feeling more defiant than anything at the moment.

A smirk slid easily across his face. "And what makes you think that I might start a game?"

Sakura dug her heel into the ground, effectively stopping their progress. "Maybe it's the fact that you've done nothing _but _play games with me since I bothered to find you online."

Sasuke raised a hand and placed it over his heart, and made a dramatically wounded face she had never seen on him before. "That hurt." He was actually making fun of her.

Sakura blew out a frustrated sigh and continued walking ahead of him. She would not get through to him. Nothing she could say would break through his little image of the situation. If he wanted to believe that there was no harm in playing with her feelings, then she would have no problem messing with him right back.

This was insane. And they had only been in each other's company for five minutes. Konoha's gates were still plainly visible behind them. Sakura rolled her eyes and fixed her gaze on the road ahead. Was it over yet?

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Thankfully, Sasuke said not another word to her during the journey, even when they ascended to the trees to quicken the trip. The only problem was he didn't need to; his casual smirks said it all. Oddly enough, that aggravated her more than if he had chattered incessantly through the hours it took to reach the village. Not that Sasuke had ever been the type to chatter.

Far too much later, they arrived in the quaint little village that was their destination. They had been lucky that this mission was only on the border of the Fire Country—Sakura would have gone insane if she had had to spend another minute traveling with him.

The village was minute, only about a quarter of Konoha's size. A crowd was gathered around what looked like the main street, the hustle and bustle of the market buzzing with haggling. Shopkeepers grinned at unsuspecting passersby as though willing to pounce if needed, only to duck back under their tents as a rather large breeze kicked up dust. It was a dry day, and the sun beating down on them did nothing for Sakura's mood.

"Let's get food before we start asking questions," Sasuke said, ever the take-charge one. However, Sakura felt no inclination to follow his suggestions today. In fact, she felt no desire to listen to him at all, really.

"I think I'll start with questions first," she stated stubbornly, striding swiftly past him and into the nearest merchant's tent. She could practically feel Sasuke's scowl burning into her back as she went inside.

The tent was a deep, rich purple, and the many expensive-looking beaded pillows scattered around its edges told Sakura that this merchant had acquired a great deal of money in his travels. He must know some pretty high-end people to succeed this much in his business. He would make a great source of information.

"Excuse me," she spoke authoritatively to a figure swathed in ruby fabric. Bent over and turned away from her, the merchant was intently examining a small statue perched on one of his many shelves lining the area. He continued on as if he hadn't heard her.

Sakura cleared her throat and tried again. "Excuse me, sir." She placed a gentle hand on his shoulder and his entire body jumped, his head smacking rather violently on the shelf above him. He emitted a low groan before emerging from the shelf and facing her. His frown pulled down every sagging wrinkle in his face, Sakura noticed with a wince. This was not a good start.

"I was hoping you could tell me about some men you may have done business with," she said in what she hoped was a soothing tone. "I'm looking for a certain man."

"I do not divulge information about my clients," he snapped, irritation dripping from every syllable.

"Then perhaps if I offered you some form of payment in return?" Her professional voice was a bit hard to maintain when he glowered at her like that.

The man snorted in disbelief, and his piggy little eyes widened a fraction. "I will not be bribed!" he exclaimed, waving an arm for emphasis. "A nosy young woman such as yourself would be wise to know your place. I'm sure you have dishes to wash at home." As he sneered down at her, Sakura's temper flared.

_Oh, no he didn't. _

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Sasuke entered the tent just as a heavy man thudded to the ground mere feet away. The man's head hit his shoes, and Sasuke disgustedly stepped back. He raised an unimpressed eyebrow at the girl standing before him.

"I had thought the idea was to get answers out of the merchants, not render them unconscious," he said. Sakura harrumphed and turned her head away.

"He deserved it," she claimed, glaring at the body on the floor. "He called me _nosy_. I'm sure he'll wake up in an hour or two."

Sasuke dragged the man to a corner of the tent and propped him up so his back leaned against a shelf, as though that would make the merchant look less conspicuous. He smirked at Sakura.

"Next time," he said, "leave the interrogating to me. I'm sure you have dishes to wash somewhere anyway."

Sakura's mouth dropped open. "You were right outside."

"Yes, and you failed," was Sasuke's simple response. "You're lucky everyone else is closing their shops right now. I think no one would be very happy to stumble on this." He nudged the merchant with the toe of his shoe as the man gradually began to lean sideways.

"Shall we go?" Sakura grumbled as the merchant hit the floor for the second time.

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The bar seemed to be the only open place left. Sakura climbed onto a barstool and ordered something strong before Sasuke could even sit down next to her. Fortunately for her the bartender was prompt, and he plunked down a mug of warm liquid on the bar, some of the yellow drink splashing onto the wood. Sakura took it without hesitation. Beer wasn't quite as strong as she had been hoping for, but she would take what was in front of her.

"Do you really find my presence that hard to bear?" Sasuke asked her as she began downing it. She waited until she had gulped down the last of her beverage before responding.

"Is that a trick question?" She ordered another, and Sasuke sighed.

"No games today," he said.

"Bull," was the reply. This would be harder than he thought.

"I'm serious. For now it will be only two teammates enjoying each other's company."

"And I'm saying you're a liar," Sakura told him immediately. He wasn't getting on her good side tonight. Or any night, actually.

Damn. She saw straight through the "make nice" strategy. Sasuke called the bartender over and said not another word to the woman beside him.

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"This is the hotel the Hokage reserved for us?" Sakura asked doubtfully. She had never been assigned such a grungy place before.

"Like it or not, this is the best the village has," Sasuke told her as he slid the key in the lock to their room. "Feel lucky that it even has double rooms."

"If it didn't I'd be sleeping outside," Sakura muttered.

Sasuke settled onto his bed, and Sakura ungracefully collapsed onto hers. One night. She could get through one night. _Just close your eyes, sleep, and when you wake up it will already be day two of the mission, _Sakura told herself. _If you fall asleep now he can't say anything to you. _

Quiet drifted over the two of them, and for the first time in days she felt an odd sort of peace. Her thoughts were no longer in turmoil over the man across the room. For now, she could pretend that he hadn't completely slaughtered her feelings before, and that he could stop these insane little attempts to win her over only to throw his winnings away. She couldn't possibly describe how much it had hurt her, but thanks to her excellent memory of the "rules" every ninja abided by, no one would ever know—least of all Sasuke himself. He never did like weakness, and if he knew that he had gotten to her in any way, that would just prove to him that he had won.

Sakura rolled over so she was facing away from him. It would be blatant denial to say that she would not be thinking of him tonight, but the less she had to look at him, the better.

For a couple of minutes, there was no sound save for the dull hum of the air conditioner in the impossibly hot, cramped room. She lay there in silence, not sure what she was waiting for but waiting all the same. She guessed she was waiting for sleep to come, but her body told her that she was not tired in the least bit. It was maddening.

Sakura glanced over at the clock after what seemed like an hour and found that it had only been half that. Suppressing an aggravated groan that she felt no more refreshed, she sat up and swung her legs to the side of her bed. Sasuke lay still on his bed, unmoving. Damn him. Why could he sleep while she stayed restless?

_Screw this. _The floor creaked as Sakura stepped across the wooden boards, and carefully she made her way over to the door. Perhaps a walk outside alone might clear her head.

The air was much more refreshing than she had anticipated. The streetlights were dimmer than at home, creating a calming effect as they cast gentle shadows on nearby benches. Sakura wandered through the residential streets until she ended up back at the market square, and found one light still on in the darkened buildings surrounding her.

_What is that? _She wondered as she strained to make out the sign. It was, of all things, a public library. It had to be at least two in the morning by now…

Suspicious, Sakura approached the building and tried the door. It opened without complaint. Treading carefully inside, she rounded the corner in the hall and the room opened up, to stacks and stacks of barely-lit bookshelves. The place was much bigger than it had looked from the outside; the ceiling was high, couches were arranged against the wall in a reading section, and office desks were gathered in the center.

She spotted a thick head of hair from behind the main desk, and as she stepped forward she glimpsed a young man there. The buttons on his jacket were undone with a white shirt revealed beneath, and she glimpsed khaki shorts. The man was in intense concentration, his pen scrawling frantically across his paper.

"Hello?" Sakura spoke quietly. The pen made an unintentional long scratch across the man's work, and he emitted a low, exasperated noise. People were really irritable here. Sakura made a mental note to just stop speaking to people in this village entirely.

"Oh, hello," he responded with a forced, tired smile. "Technically we're closed, miss."

"Oh, I was pretty sure of that," Sakura explained. "I was just curious about this place. I could see the light from the street."

The man relaxed a bit as he studied her, ultimately deciding she wasn't a lunatic. "I see. I had forgotten to lock the door. Busy with applications, you see." He gestured toward his paperwork, and she squinted to make out the employment applications scattered across his desk. "This place won't stick around for too long. Looks like a new job's the next step."

"You own this place?"

"I do. But the head of the trading industry around here decided the space should be his. He offered me a ridiculously low price, but there was too much pressure from the village for me to refuse." He shook his head. "We need the constant traffic from traders. Bastards, all of them." There was a twinkle in his eyes as he spoke. "I'm guessing you're not a trader."

"Ha, I don't think so."

There was silence for a moment as Sakura considered what he had said. The head of trade was the mission. She had heard of shady dealings, and this was the first piece of good information she had found. Sasuke would be so jealous to find out she had scored first in the knowledge-hunt.

"Well, I'm not sure how late you're planning on staying up, but the computers are still on. Feel free to stay for a while if you need to kill some time." He smiled at her, and she took in just how young he was. He couldn't be much older than she was, with light sandy brown hair and a confident smile.

"Thank you," she said, extending her hand with a smile of her own. "Sakura."

"Syaoran." He took it, and pretended to be surprised as he shook her hand. "Awfully small. You sure you can handle yourself staying out this late, girl?"

Sakura's eyes widened at his unexpected teasing comment. "I could say the same for you. You could be a tiny little guy for all I know."

He stood up, and Sakura was corrected. Tall and lean, he stood a full head taller than she.

"Oh, all right, you win," she admitted.

He grinned, and pointed toward the tiny cluster of monitors in the corner.

"There they are. I'll be up for a while."

Sakura thanked him, and made her way over.

**Noir18: You have got to be kidding me.**

**Noir18: Where the hell did you go?**

Sakura suppressed a disbelieving snort. Syaoran looked over his desk at her.

"A friend's online," she explained.

"Tell him to get to bed," Syaoran suggested, humor in his voice.

**Cherrylover2: Me? Where the hell are you?**

**Noir18: There's a public computer in the downstairs lobby. Couldn't sleep. Now answer my question.**

**Cherrylover2: There's a library in the village. Owner's working late.**

**Cherrylover2: And I got information for the mission. Na-na-naaa.**

**Noir18: Remind me why I ever thought you were mature.**

**Cherrylover2: One-zero.**

**Noir18: Get back here and sleep. We have a lot of work ahead of us tomorrow.**

**Cherrylover2: No.**

**Noir18: No?**

**Cherrylover2: I'm enjoying a rather nice conversation with Syaoran. **

**Noir18: Syaoran.**

**Cherrylover2: Mmhmm. He's very young to own a public library…**

**Noir18: Get back here.**

Sakura laughed again.

"He doesn't like the fact that I'm at some library with some guy at two in the morning," she explained so Syaoran could hear. She heard him chuckle at her childishness.

"Big brother?"

"Travel partner."

"I don't see you rushing back home."

She ducked her head to hide her amusement. "Oh, he can wait a while. Won't kill him."

"If I didn't know better, I'd think you were enjoying torturing your poor worried travel guy," Syaoran jokingly commented.

"Trust me, some people deserve it," she answered from across the room. Syaoran shook his head with an amused smile and returned to his paperwork.

**Cherrylover2: No. **

**Noir18: Sakura. For the good of the mission, do not make me come find you.**

**Cherrylover2: You're sounding awfully desperate there. Don't worry. Syaoran's taking care of me.**

Sasuke could see her devilish smirk in his head. He growled.

**Noir18: You can tell this 'Syaoran' to lay off. We have a mission to do, and you can't afford distractions.**

**Cherrylover2: Don't order me. I rather like this distraction.**

_Noir18 signed off at 2:28 AM._

That was it. He was going to find her.


End file.
